Short Interest in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Expands By 24.0%

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) saw a significant growth in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 14,660,000 shares, a growth of 24.0% from the October 15th total of 11,820,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,640,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.6 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on SRE. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Sempra from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Sempra from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Sempra in a report on Thursday, October 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $98.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Sempra from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Sempra from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.00.

Sempra Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of SRE stock traded up $1.75 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $92.19. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,050,146 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,316,892. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $84.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $79.96. Sempra has a 12-month low of $66.40 and a 12-month high of $93.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.39 billion, a PE ratio of 20.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.75.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.05 by ($0.16). Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The firm had revenue of $2.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.54 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.63%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Sempra by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,963 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $377,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the period. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sempra by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,983 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sempra by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 4,019 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $306,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sempra by 1.6% during the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,742 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $731,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. Finally, SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sempra by 4.0% during the second quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,794 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $289,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the period. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Sempra

Sempra operates as an energy infrastructure company in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Sempra California, Sempra Texas Utilities, and Sempra Infrastructure. The Sempra California segment provides electric services; and natural gas services to San Diego County.