On September 30, 2023, Spire (NYSE:SR) received an upgraded rating from research analysts at Mizuho. The “neutral” rating was changed to a “buy” rating in a report released by FlyOnTheWall. This upgrade signifies positive sentiment towards the company’s future prospects and may influence investor decisions.
As of Friday’s opening, NYSE:SR was trading at $55.89. It is worth mentioning that the company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, indicating its financial leverage. Furthermore, Spire has a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.56, which highlights its ability to meet short-term obligations. With a market cap of $2.94 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.97, the stock appears to be priced fairly compared to its earnings.
Over the past year, Spire’s stock has fluctuated between $55.34 and $75.83. These figures represent the 52-week low and high points for the company’s shares respectively. Currently, the stock seems to be closer to its lowest point in the past year.
Analysts have calculated a few important indicators as well. The firm’s P/E/G ratio stands at 3.20, suggesting that investors should carefully consider their potential returns relative to the growth rate before purchasing SR shares. Additionally, Spire has a beta of 0.49, indicating that it is less volatile than the overall market.
Examining moving averages provides insight into recent trends for SR stock prices: the stock recorded a 50-day simple moving average of $59.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $64.50.
Considering ownership composition, institutional investors have recently made changes to their stakes in Spire Holdings LP demonstrated an impressive increase in holdings by 817%. They now own 578 shares valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 515 shares during the last quarter. Meanwhile, International Assets Investment Management LLC recently entered the market, buying new shares worth $46,000 in the first quarter. Furthermore, Cohen & Steers Inc. boosted its holdings by 31.8% during the same period, now owning 639 shares valued at $46,000. Ronald Blue Trust Inc., on the other hand, increased its position by 27.8% and currently holds 795 shares worth $55,000. Lastly, Bessemer Group Inc.’s ownership grew by an astonishing 1,419%, indicating their confidence in Spire’s potential.
Looking back to Spire’s latest quarterly earnings report released on August 2nd, the company reported earnings per share (EPS) of ($0.42), falling short of the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by a significant margin of ($0.40). Despite this disappointment, Spire maintained a net margin of 9.05% and a return on equity of 8.81%. During the same quarter last year, the company achieved an EPS of $0.01.
[bs_slider_forecast ticker=”BRY”]
Analyst Reports and Insider Trading Activity Shape Sentiment Towards Spire’s Stock
On September 30, 2023, various analysts provided research reports about the stock of Spire. TheStreet downgraded Spire’s rating from a “b” to a “c+” in their report on August 2nd. Meanwhile, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Spire from $70.00 to $72.00 and maintained an “equal weight” rating on September 21st. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Spire with a “sell” rating on August 17th. Wells Fargo & Company, on the other hand, reduced their target price for Spire shares from $71.00 to $64.00 on August 3rd. Guggenheim also decreased their price target for Spire shares from $69.00 to $65.00 on July 7th.
At present, two equities research analysts have assigned a sell rating, while six others have rated the stock as hold and one analyst has given it a buy rating. According to Bloomberg data, the average rating for Spire’s stock is currently classified as “Hold,” with an average price target of $67.50.
Switching gears, noteworthy insider trading activity has also been reported within Spire. Director Paul D. Koonce notably acquired 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that took place on Thursday, August 17th. This acquisition occurred at an average price of $59.27 per share, amounting to a total transaction value of $296,350.
Following this acquisition, Director Koonce now holds direct ownership of 5,000 shares in the company with an approximate value of $296,350.
The details pertaining to this purchase have been officially disclosed in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which can be accessed via the SEC website.
Additionally, Director Paul D Koonce further acquired 5,000 shares of Spire stock on the aforementioned transaction date, paying an average price of $59.27 per share and bringing the total value of the acquisition to $296,350.
After this acquisition, Director Koonce now holds 5,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $296,350. Once again, this transaction was disclosed with the SEC through a legal filing accessible through a provided hyperlink.
Not restricted to insider buying alone, there has also been insider selling activity within Spire. Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 779 shares of Spire stock on Wednesday, September 13th at an average price of $60.42 per share. The total value of this sale amounted to $47,067.18.
Following the completion of this transaction, Treasurer Woodard now possesses 1,470 shares of the company’s stock with an approximate value of $88,817.40.
The full disclosure for this particular sale can be accessed through the link provided in this article.
In sum, over the past three months insiders have acquired a total of 9,100 shares valued at $450,592. It should be noted that these transactions by corporate insiders account for approximately 2.93% ownership of Spire’s stock.
Overall, these recent developments within Spire highlight significant activities both in terms of analyst opinions and insider trading behavior. Investors and stakeholders may find it valuable to closely monitor future updates regarding these matters as they could potentially impact market sentiment toward Spire’s stock moving forward.
