Spire (NYSE:SR) Rating Downgraded to 'Sell' by StockNews.com

StockNews.com has downgraded the rating for Spire (NYSE:SR – Free Report), moving it from a hold to a sell in a report released on Friday morning.

Recently, Spire has been under the analysis of several other financial institutions. On November 22nd, Morgan Stanley revised its price target for Spire, decreasing it from $77.00 to $75.00 while maintaining an 'equal weight' rating. On the same day, Stifel Nicolaus adjusted their target price from $70.00 to $69.00 and also assigned a 'hold' rating. Meanwhile, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target for Spire from $73.00 to $75.00 while giving it an 'equal weight' rating on November 21st. Earlier, on October 17th, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH downgraded Spire from a 'neutral' to a 'sell' rating, lowering their price target from $65.50 to $60.50.

Additionally, UBS Group raised its price target on Spire from $75.00 to $80.00, assigning a 'buy' rating as part of a report also released on November 21st. Overall, two research analysts have given Spire a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, and one has issued a buy rating. Data from MarketBeat indicates that Spire's consensus rating stands at 'Hold' with an average price target around $69.93.

Current Stock Performance

As of Friday, NYSE:SR opened at $73.19. Over the past year, Spire has seen a low of $56.36 and a high of $73.64. Currently, the company displays a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.30, and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The stock is averaging $66.49 over the last 50 days and $64.26 over the past 200 days. With a market capitalization of $4.23 billion, Spire has a PE ratio of 16.98 and a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24, with a beta of 0.52.

Dividend Announcement

Spire recently declared a quarterly dividend that is set to be distributed on January 3rd. Shareholders who are on record as of December 11th will receive a dividend payment of $3.14. The ex-dividend date is also December 11th. This dividend represents an annualized figure of $12.56, yielding approximately 17.16%, an increase from their previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. Spire's current dividend payout ratio is 70.07%.

Institutional Investors' Activity

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently been buying and selling shares of Spire. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in Spire by 7.1% during the first quarter, now holding 31,218 shares valued at $1,916,000 after buying an additional 2,070 shares. Comerica Bank also raised its stake in Spire by 12.1%, owning 58,063 shares worth $3,563,000 after acquiring an extra 6,284 shares in the same period. Other investors such as LRI Investments LLC and Burney Co. have also increased their positions in Spire. Overall, hedge funds and institutional investors currently hold about 87.36% of the stock.

Overview of Spire Inc

Spire Inc, along with its subsidiaries, operates in the field of purchasing, retail distribution, and sale of natural gas to various end-users across the United States. The company manages three segments: Gas Utility, Gas Marketing, and Midstream which also involves natural gas marketing and related services.

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