California State Teachers Retirement System Grows Position in Spire Inc. $SR

California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) by 20.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 66,491 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,120 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Spire were worth $6,020,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SR. Optima Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Spire in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Spire during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Spire during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Spire during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, SHP Wealth Management purchased a new position in Spire in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.36% of the company’s stock.

Spire Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SR opened at $80.83 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $80.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $85.98. Spire Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.91 and a 12 month high of $95.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.52.

Spire (NYSE:SR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.32) by $0.06. Spire had a net margin of 13.97% and a return on equity of 9.49%. The company had revenue of $420.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $394.62 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.01 earnings per share. Spire’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.2% on a year-over-year basis. Spire has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.900-4.100 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Spire Inc. will post 4.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Spire Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be issued a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. Spire’s payout ratio is presently 58.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SR has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BTIG Research set a $101.00 price target on Spire in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Spire in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 price objective (up from $84.00) on shares of Spire in a report on Friday, June 26th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Spire in a research report on Monday, May 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $96.00 target price on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen began coverage on Spire in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. They set a “hold” rating and a $101.00 target price for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.50.

Spire News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Spire this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Spire reported fiscal third-quarter adjusted loss of $0.26 per share, better than the $0.32 consensus estimate cited by MarketBeat. Revenue of $420.2 million also exceeded expectations of $394.6 million and increased 19.2% year over year. Spire earnings results
• Positive Sentiment: Management reaffirmed fiscal 2026 adjusted EPS guidance of $3.90–$4.10, fiscal 2027 guidance of $5.40–$5.60, and its long-term adjusted earnings growth target of 5%–7%. Maintaining the outlook reduces near-term uncertainty for investors. Spire reports FY26 third quarter results
• Positive Sentiment: Spire completed the divestitures of its Spire Marketing and Spire Storage businesses. The transactions generated a large gain from discontinued operations and leave the company more focused on its regulated gas utility operations. Spire fiscal Q3 results
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported net income rose to $211.2 million from $20.9 million, but the increase was primarily attributable to the after-tax gain on the divestitures rather than ongoing operations.
• Negative Sentiment: Continuing operations posted a GAAP loss of $42.6 million, or $0.72 per share, compared with a $13.3 million loss a year earlier. Higher operating and interest expenses offset gains from the utility business, and the adjusted loss widened versus the prior-year quarter’s $0.01 adjusted EPS. Spire’s Q3 loss and revenue report

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Paul D. Koonce bought 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $78.46 per share, with a total value of $39,230.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 8,000 shares in the company, valued at $627,680. This trade represents a 6.67% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Ryan L. Hyman sold 3,822 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.51, for a total value of $307,709.22. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 14,295 shares in the company, valued at $1,150,890.45. This represents a 21.10% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders bought a total of 3,000 shares of company stock valued at $251,100 over the last three months. Company insiders own 2.26% of the company’s stock.

Spire 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.