Quest Partners LLC Takes Position in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR)

Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 34,848 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,116,000. Quest Partners LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Spire as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Spire by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,626,863 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $345,321,000 after acquiring an additional 65,486 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Spire by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 837,103 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $52,185,000 after purchasing an additional 19,032 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Spire by 11.0% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 698,819 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $42,439,000 after buying an additional 69,020 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Spire by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 677,338 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,225,000 after buying an additional 28,474 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Spire in the 4th quarter valued at $24,541,000. 87.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Spire Price Performance

NYSE:SR opened at $65.54 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $3.78 billion, a PE ratio of 16.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.52. Spire Inc. has a 12 month low of $53.77 and a 12 month high of $68.02. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $64.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $61.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

Spire (NYSE:SR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported ($0.14) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.18) by $0.04. Spire had a return on equity of 8.10% and a net margin of 9.40%. The company had revenue of $414.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $313.86 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.42) earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Spire Inc. will post 4.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Spire Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.755 per share. This represents a $3.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.61%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 11th. Spire’s dividend payout ratio is currently 76.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SR has been the topic of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Spire from $64.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Spire from $67.00 to $64.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $62.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Spire

In other news, Director Maria V. Fogarty sold 6,590 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.15, for a total transaction of $429,338.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 9,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $638,470. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Steven P. Rasche acquired 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $23.83 per share, for a total transaction of $107,235.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,500 shares in the company, valued at $393,195. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Maria V. Fogarty sold 6,590 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.15, for a total value of $429,338.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 9,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $638,470. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.86% of the company’s stock.

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.