Exchange Traded Concepts LLC Grows Position in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR)

Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its position in shares of Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 121,705 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 923 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC’s holdings in Spire were worth $8,255,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Spire during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Spire by 87.2% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 438 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Spire by 1,318.4% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 539 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 501 shares in the last quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co grew its holdings in Spire by 28.6% in the third quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co now owns 900 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Spire by 38.9% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,057 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Spire Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SR opened at $69.62 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $68.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $66.51. Spire Inc. has a 52-week low of $56.36 and a 52-week high of $73.64. The company has a market cap of $4.02 billion, a PE ratio of 16.15, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.57.

Spire Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 11th were issued a $3.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 11th. This represents a $12.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 18.04%. This is a boost from Spire’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. Spire’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on SR. UBS Group upped their price target on Spire from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. 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. Bank of America initiated coverage on Spire in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $70.00 price target for the company. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Spire from $70.00 to $69.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Spire from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $71.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Spire

In related news, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,150 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.47, for a total transaction of $77,590.50. Following the completion of the sale, the treasurer now directly owns 2,587 shares in the company, valued at approximately $174,544.89. The trade was a 30.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Paul D. Koonce purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $73.61 per share, for a total transaction of $73,610.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 2.33% of the company’s stock.

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.