Sempra Energy $SRE Shares Sold by Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC

Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC lowered its position in shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 3.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 332,987 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 11,486 shares during the quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC owned about 0.05% of Sempra Energy worth $29,962,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of SRE. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in Sempra Energy by 52.5% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 18,008 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,285,000 after buying an additional 6,196 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP increased its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 40.7% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 53,512 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,819,000 after acquiring an additional 15,474 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 8.4% in the 2nd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 60,141 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,557,000 after acquiring an additional 4,659 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 135,288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $10,251,000 after acquiring an additional 6,464 shares during the period. Finally, Bailard Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sempra Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at $208,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SRE has been the subject of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 price objective (up from $96.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Argus raised Sempra Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $99.00 target price (up from $80.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Monday, November 24th. Finally, Barclays set a $95.00 price target on Sempra Energy and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Sempra Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $100.00.

Insider Transactions at Sempra Energy

In other Sempra Energy news, Director Cynthia J. Warner acquired 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $92.95 per share, with a total value of $232,375.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 11,275 shares in the company, valued at $1,048,011.25. This trade represents a 28.49% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Jennifer M. Kirk bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $93.44 per share, with a total value of $93,440.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $93,440. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have acquired a total of 6,192 shares of company stock valued at $576,979 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Energy Stock Up 2.2%

SRE stock opened at $95.20 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $90.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $89.68. The company has a market capitalization of $62.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.49, a PEG ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.73. Sempra Energy has a twelve month low of $61.90 and a twelve month high of $97.44.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.16. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 13.27% and a return on equity of 8.22%. The firm had revenue of $3.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.50 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 19th will be given a $0.6575 dividend. This represents a $2.63 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 19th. This is a positive change from Sempra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. Sempra Energy’s payout ratio is 93.48%.

About Sempra Energy

Sempra Energy is a San Diego–based energy infrastructure company that develops, owns and operates businesses delivering electricity and natural gas. Its operations include regulated utility services that provide electric and gas distribution to residential, commercial and industrial customers, as well as non‑regulated infrastructure businesses that develop and manage large-scale energy assets.

The company’s product and service portfolio spans electricity and natural gas delivery, transmission and storage, liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities, power generation and electric transmission projects.