Spire (NYSE:SR) Director Buys $171,620.00 in Stock

Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) Director Paul Koonce bought 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $85.81 per share, for a total transaction of $171,620.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 7,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $600,670. This trade represents a 40.00% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Spire Stock Performance

Shares of SR stock opened at $85.49 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $90.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $87.57. Spire Inc. has a 52 week low of $69.94 and a 52 week high of $95.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The company has a market cap of $5.05 billion, a PE ratio of 15.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.56.

Spire (NYSE:SR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $3.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.72 by $0.04. Spire had a net margin of 13.97% and a return on equity of 9.49%. The business had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.60 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Spire Inc. will post 5.18 EPS for the current year.

Spire Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 11th will be paid a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 11th. Spire’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 58.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SR has been the topic of a number of research reports. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Spire in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $101.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Spire in a research note on Monday. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $96.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $102.00 target price on shares of Spire in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Spire from $106.00 to $103.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Spire from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Spire

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Spire by 21.5% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 219,861 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $17,923,000 after purchasing an additional 38,875 shares in the last quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co acquired a new stake in Spire during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,414,000. Csenge Advisory Group grew its holdings in Spire by 131.0% during the 3rd quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 37,400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,049,000 after purchasing an additional 21,211 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Spire by 30.8% during the 3rd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 374,050 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $30,493,000 after acquiring an additional 88,154 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Spire by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 550,974 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $44,915,000 after acquiring an additional 27,292 shares in the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.