Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Given New $106.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) had its target price increased by research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $98.00 to $106.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 10.83% from the company’s current price.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Sempra Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Sempra Energy from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Argus upgraded shares of Sempra Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 target price (up from $96.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $100.55.

Sempra Energy Price Performance

SRE traded down $0.30 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $95.64. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 413,730 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,915,326. The company has a market cap of $62.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.65, a PEG ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.73. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $91.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $89.87. Sempra Energy has a 1 year low of $61.90 and a 1 year high of $97.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.

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

Insider Activity at Sempra Energy

In related news, Director Richard J. Mark purchased 2,692 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $93.30 per share, for a total transaction of $251,163.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 17,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,621,180.80. The trade was a 18.33% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Dyan Z. Wold sold 1,539 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.38, for a total transaction of $146,789.82. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,633 shares in the company, valued at $441,895.54. This trade represents a 24.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have bought a total of 6,192 shares of company stock valued at $576,979 over the last quarter. 0.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. West Wealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. West Wealth Group LLC now owns 10,207 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $942,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO grew its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 6,911 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $622,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares during the period. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Sempra Energy by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,587 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $773,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton raised its holdings in Sempra Energy by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 5,191 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $458,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the period. Finally, Advisor OS LLC raised its holdings in Sempra Energy by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 9,681 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $871,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.