Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Stake Boosted by TCW Group Inc.

TCW Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 65.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 139,606 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 55,305 shares during the quarter. TCW Group Inc.’s holdings in Sempra were worth $12,246,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Sempra by 9.1% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 18,978,605 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,587,181,000 after purchasing an additional 1,582,653 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake in Sempra by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 32,940,620 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,774,974,000 after buying an additional 1,539,026 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in Sempra by 201.2% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 620,394 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $51,882,000 after buying an additional 414,406 shares during the period. Unigestion Holding SA acquired a new stake in Sempra in the third quarter worth $33,023,000. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in Sempra by 38.3% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,420,045 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $118,219,000 after buying an additional 393,277 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:SRE opened at $87.11 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $84.31 and a 200-day moving average of $84.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $55.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.78. Sempra has a twelve month low of $66.40 and a twelve month high of $95.77.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SRE has been the subject of several recent research reports. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Sempra from $99.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Sempra from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Sempra from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $85.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Sempra from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $91.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 2,755 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.93, for a total transaction of $225,717.15. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,139,236.65. The trade was a 16.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 49,737 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.94, for a total transaction of $4,125,186.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $165.88. The trade was a 100.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.