Analysts Set Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) Price Target at $71.50

Shares of Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the nine brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have issued a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $71.50.

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Spire in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com lowered Spire from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH cut Spire from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $65.50 to $60.50 in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on Spire in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $73.00 target price for the company. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Spire from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st.

Spire Stock Performance

NYSE SR opened at $69.72 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 0.45 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $68.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.20. Spire has a 1 year low of $56.36 and a 1 year high of $73.64. The firm has a market cap of $4.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.18, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.57.

Spire Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 11th were paid a $3.14 dividend. 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 18.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 11th. Spire’s payout ratio is currently 72.85%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Spire

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Mutual Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Spire by 38.9% during the 4th quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 13,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $941,000 after acquiring an additional 3,836 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its holdings in shares of Spire by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 12,155 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $824,000 after purchasing an additional 466 shares during the period. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC raised its position in shares of Spire by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 4,444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $304,000 after buying an additional 295 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC bought a new stake in Spire during the fourth quarter valued at $3,241,000. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. grew its position in Spire by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 63,641 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,317,000 after buying an additional 1,600 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.