Janus Henderson Group PLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR)

Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in shares of Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) by 13.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 27,072 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,160 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in Spire were worth $1,822,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Spire during the third quarter worth $25,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Spire in the second quarter worth $31,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Spire by 1,318.4% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 539 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 501 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Spire by 26.8% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 761 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Missouri Trust & Investment Co raised its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Paul D. Koonce acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $73.61 per share, for a total transaction of $73,610.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,425 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $178,504.25. This represents a 70.18 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.86% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on SR shares. Mizuho increased their price objective on Spire from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Spire from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH downgraded Spire from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $65.50 to $60.50 in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group increased their target price on Spire from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Spire from $70.00 to $69.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $69.93.

Spire Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:SR opened at $68.08 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $67.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $64.76. Spire Inc. has a 12-month low of $56.36 and a 12-month high of $73.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24.

Spire Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be paid a $3.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. This is a boost from Spire’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. This represents a $12.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 18.45%. Spire’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.85%.

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.