Spire (NYSE:SR) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $73.96 and last traded at $73.67, with a volume of 58869 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $73.37.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on SR shares. StockNews.com downgraded Spire from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Spire from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. 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. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Spire from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on shares of Spire in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $73.00 target price on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $71.50.

Spire Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $4.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.58. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $69.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $67.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.50 and a quick ratio of 0.30.

Spire (NYSE:SR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.42 by ($0.08). Spire had a return on equity of 7.88% and a net margin of 9.70%. Research analysts forecast that Spire Inc. will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Spire Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be paid a $0.785 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $3.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.25%. Spire’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.03%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,150 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.47, for a total transaction of $77,590.50. Following the sale, the treasurer now directly owns 2,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $174,544.89. This represents a 30.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul D. Koonce acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $73.61 per share, with a total value of $73,610.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly 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. Corporate insiders own 2.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Spire

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Spire by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,385,452 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $93,244,000 after acquiring an additional 71,798 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Spire in the 3rd quarter valued at $787,000. Cynosure Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Spire in the 3rd quarter valued at $4,067,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in shares of Spire by 116.2% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 28,025 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,886,000 after buying an additional 15,060 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP lifted its position in shares of Spire by 175.5% during the 3rd quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 15,637 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,052,000 after buying an additional 9,962 shares during the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is owned by 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.