Zacks Research Has Optimistic Outlook of Spire Q1 Earnings

Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) – Stock analysts at Zacks Research upped their Q1 2028 earnings per share estimates for Spire in a report released on Tuesday, July 14th. Zacks Research analyst Team now forecasts that the utilities provider will post earnings of $2.15 per share for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $2.14. The consensus estimate for Spire’s current full-year earnings is $4.02 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Spire’s FY2028 earnings at $6.05 EPS.

Spire (NYSE:SR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $3.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.72 by $0.04. Spire had a net margin of 13.97% and a return on equity of 9.49%. The company had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.60 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year.

SR has been the subject of a number of other reports. Wolfe Research began coverage on Spire in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley set a $96.00 price target on shares of Spire in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Spire in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $88.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Spire in a report on Monday, May 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $96.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $85.00 target price (up from $84.00) on shares of Spire in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Spire currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $94.30.

Spire Stock Performance

NYSE:SR opened at $81.30 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.81 billion, a PE ratio of 14.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.52. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $81.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $86.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.48. Spire has a 12 month low of $71.24 and a 12 month high of $95.31.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Spire

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SR. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Spire by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 40,489 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,348,000 after buying an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Detalus Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Spire by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Detalus Advisors LLC now owns 6,200 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $561,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Spire by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 5,734 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $474,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Spire by 40.3% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 519 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Spire by 16.5% during the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,136 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Spire

In other news, Director Paul D. Koonce bought 500 shares of Spire stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $78.46 per share, for a total transaction of $39,230.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 8,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $627,680. The trade was a 6.67% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Ryan L. Hyman sold 3,822 shares of Spire stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.51, for a total transaction of $307,709.22. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 14,295 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,150,890.45. The trade was a 21.10% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have purchased 3,000 shares of company stock valued at $251,100. Corporate insiders own 2.26% of the company’s stock.

Spire Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, June 11th were paid a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 11th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. Spire’s dividend payout ratio is currently 58.00%.

Spire Company Profile

Spire Inc (NYSE: SR), formerly known as The Laclede Group, is a regulated natural gas distribution company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Through its three operating divisions—Spire Missouri, Spire Alabama and Spire Mississippi—the company delivers natural gas to more than 1.7 million residential, commercial and industrial customers. Spire’s service territory spans key markets in the central and southern United States, including metropolitan St. Louis, central Alabama and central Mississippi.

Founded in 1857 as the Laclede Gas Light Company, the business has grown through strategic acquisitions, notably Alabama Gas Corporation in 2013 and Mississippi Gas in 2016.