Morgan Stanley Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Stock

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) had its price objective lifted by investment analysts at Morgan Stanley from $85.00 to $86.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 22.99% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Barclays lowered Sempra from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $95.00 to $72.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $77.00 price target (down previously from $96.00) on shares of Sempra in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Argus lowered Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Guggenheim decreased their price target on Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Sempra from $92.00 to $78.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Sempra has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.58.

Sempra Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SRE traded down $0.53 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $69.92. 1,495,291 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,511,096. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $78.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $83.75. Sempra has a 52 week low of $64.89 and a 52 week high of $95.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.76.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.03. Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The firm had revenue of $3.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.13 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director James C. Yardley bought 5,019 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $69.74 per share, with a total value of $350,025.06. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 5,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $350,025.06. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael N. Mears bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $67.70 per share, for a total transaction of $67,700.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 5,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $338,500. This trade represents a 25.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have purchased 9,319 shares of company stock valued at $651,676. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Sempra by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 63,018,055 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,527,944,000 after acquiring an additional 490,269 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Sempra by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 38,407,154 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,369,076,000 after acquiring an additional 4,082,261 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Sempra by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 32,940,620 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,774,974,000 after acquiring an additional 1,539,026 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Sempra by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 20,489,918 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,797,376,000 after acquiring an additional 1,511,313 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Sempra in the 4th quarter worth about $1,535,000,000. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sempra Company Profile

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.