Spire (NYSE:SR) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Spire (NYSE:SR) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Saturday morning.

A number of other analysts also recently commented on SR. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Spire from $70.00 to $69.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH lowered Spire from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $65.50 to $60.50 in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Spire from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Mizuho upgraded shares of Spire from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $65.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Spire from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Spire has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $71.50.

Spire Stock Up 1.0 %

Spire stock opened at $66.30 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $68.19 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.45. The company has a market cap of $3.83 billion, a PE ratio of 15.38, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.57. Spire has a fifty-two week low of $56.36 and a fifty-two week high of $73.64.

Spire Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 11th were issued a $3.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 11th. This is a boost from Spire’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. This represents a $12.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 18.94%. Spire’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Spire

In related news, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,150 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.47, for a total transaction of $77,590.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the treasurer now owns 2,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $174,544.89. This trade represents a 30.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul D. Koonce bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $73.61 per share, for a total transaction of $73,610.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,425 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $178,504.25. This trade represents a 70.18 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 2.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Spire

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Spire in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Spire by 87.2% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 438 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Spire by 1,318.4% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 539 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 501 shares during the last quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co lifted its stake in Spire by 28.6% in the third quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co now owns 900 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Spire by 38.9% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,057 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Spire

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.