Based in San Diego, California, Sempra (SRE) is an energy infrastructure company that sells, distributes, stores, and transports electricity and natural gas. Valued at $47.56 billion by market cap, the company delivers energy to nearly 40 million consumers worldwide, serving a diverse customer base that includes commercial, residential, utility electricity generation, industrial, and wholesale customers.
Companies worth $10 billion or more are generally described as “large-cap stocks,” and SRE perfectly fits that description, signifying its substantial size, stability, and dominance in its industry.
The energy services major has fallen 4.2% from its 52-week high of $78.83, which it hit on May 21. Shares of SRE are up 9.2% over the past three months, marginally underperforming the broader S&P 500 Utilities Sector SPDR’s (XLU) 9.7% gains over the same time frame.
Longer term, SRE shares have risen 2.8% over the past year, and in 2024, the stock is up 2.2%. By contrast, the XLU is up 10.5% on a YTD basis and 5.2% over the past 52 weeks.
To confirm the bullish price trend, SRE has been trading above its 50-day moving average since late April and its 200-day moving average since early May.
On May 7, SRE reported its Q1 results, with revenue coming in at $3.64 billion. The company’s adjusted EPS of $1.34 missed analysts’ estimates of $1.35. SRE forecasted its full-year earnings to be between $4.60 and $4.90 per share. The stock closed up more than 1% on the day the results were released.
Highlighting the contrast in performance, another industry participant, American Electric Power Company, Inc. (AEP) has outperformed SRE. AEP stock has gained 3.4% in the past 52 weeks and 8.7% on a YTD basis.
Despite its underperformance compared to other utility stocks, analysts are optimistic about SRE’s prospects. The stock has a consensus rating of “Strong Buy” from the 16 analysts covering it, and the mean price target of $84.61 is a 12.1% premium to current levels.
On the date of publication, Dipanjan Banchur did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
