SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Price Target Raised to $51.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) had its price objective boosted by Wells Fargo & Company from $45.00 to $51.00 in a research note released on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the energy company’s stock.

SM has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of SM Energy from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Mizuho boosted their price target on SM Energy from $51.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on SM Energy from $49.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. KeyCorp upped their target price on SM Energy from $51.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a sector perform rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of SM Energy in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $50.86.

SM Energy Price Performance

SM stock opened at $48.03 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a current ratio of 1.45. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $45.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $40.83. The firm has a market cap of $5.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.99 and a beta of 4.20. SM Energy has a 1 year low of $25.03 and a 1 year high of $53.26.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 21st. The energy company reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.17. SM Energy had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 34.45%. The business had revenue of $608.73 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $611.35 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.29 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that SM Energy will post 6.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SM Energy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.50%. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.48%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SM Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Register Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in SM Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of SM Energy by 509.7% in the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 567 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 474 shares during the period. Penserra Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of SM Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. BluePath Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in SM Energy during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc increased its holdings in SM Energy by 561.7% in the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 880 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 747 shares in the last quarter. 94.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

SM Energy Company Profile

SM Energy Company, an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of oil, gas, and natural gas liquids in the state of Texas. It has working interests in oil and gas producing wells in the Midland Basin and South Texas. The company was formerly known as St.