Spire (NYSE:SR) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at LADENBURG THALM/SH SH

LADENBURG THALM/SH SH began coverage on shares of Spire (NYSE:SR) in a report issued on Friday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm issued a neutral rating and a $57.50 price objective on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a sector perform rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of Spire in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Spire in a report on Friday, April 12th. They set a buy rating and a $68.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Mizuho lowered their target price on Spire from $66.00 to $64.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $61.72.

Spire Price Performance

Shares of SR opened at $61.40 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $3.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.55, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.51. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $60.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $59.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.43. Spire has a 12 month low of $53.77 and a 12 month high of $69.99.

Spire (NYSE:SR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $756.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $688.88 million. Spire had a return on equity of 8.27% and a net margin of 8.11%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.55 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Spire will post 4.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Spire Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.755 per share. This represents a $3.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 11th. Spire’s payout ratio is presently 81.40%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,229 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.58, for a total transaction of $73,223.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the treasurer now owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $92,944.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Joseph B. Hampton sold 1,294 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.13, for a total transaction of $75,220.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 6,768 shares in the company, valued at approximately $393,423.84. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,229 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.58, for a total value of $73,223.82. Following the transaction, the treasurer now owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $92,944.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.86% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Spire

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SR. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Spire by 126.0% in the 3rd quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,501,638 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $198,123,000 after purchasing an additional 1,951,969 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Spire in the 4th quarter valued at $24,541,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Spire by 125.6% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 627,548 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,121,000 after purchasing an additional 349,393 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Spire by 275.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 313,212 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $17,722,000 after purchasing an additional 229,771 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC bought a new position in Spire in the 3rd quarter valued at $11,898,000. Institutional investors own 87.36% of the company’s stock.

Spire Company Profile

Spire Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the purchase, retail distribution, and sale of natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and other end-users of natural gas in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Gas Utility, Gas Marketing, and Midstream. It is also involved in the marketing of natural gas and related services; and transportation and storage of natural gas.