Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR)

Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) by 0.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 139,725 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 455 shares during the quarter. Spire comprises 2.1% of Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Spire were worth $9,478,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Rhumbline Advisers increased its position in shares of Spire by 4.0% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 207,639 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $12,610,000 after buying an additional 7,936 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 69,020 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Spire by 5.2% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 15,391 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $935,000 after purchasing an additional 762 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Spire in the second quarter valued at about $2,116,000. Finally, Choreo LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Spire in the second quarter valued at approximately $203,000. 87.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Spire Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of SR stock traded up $0.16 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $66.40. 61,766 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 291,785. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $67.88 and a 200 day moving average of $65.76. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Spire Inc. has a 1 year low of $56.36 and a 1 year high of $73.64. The firm has a market cap of $3.84 billion, a PE ratio of 15.41, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.57.

Spire Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th were issued a $3.14 dividend. This represents a $12.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 18.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 11th. This is a positive change from Spire’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. Spire’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.85%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Paul D. Koonce acquired 1,000 shares of Spire stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $73.61 per share, with a total value of $73,610.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly 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 acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,150 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 trade represents a 30.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on Spire in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $73.00 target price on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH downgraded Spire from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $65.50 to $60.50 in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. StockNews.com cut Spire from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Spire from $70.00 to $69.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $71.50.

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.