SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Shares Up 4.9% – Here’s What Happened

SM Energy (NYSE:SM)’s stock price rose 4.9% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $23.32 and last traded at $23.20. Approximately 393,787 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 1,860,236 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.12.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on SM shares. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of SM Energy from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Stephens reduced their price objective on SM Energy from $62.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Williams Trading set a $41.00 price target on shares of SM Energy in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of SM Energy from $45.00 to $33.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of SM Energy from $54.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $47.83.

SM Energy Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $29.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $37.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 3.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 3.75.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The energy company reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.09). SM Energy had a return on equity of 19.82% and a net margin of 28.63%. The business had revenue of $852.22 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $849.44 million. As a group, analysts expect that SM Energy will post 8.1 EPS for the current year.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 18th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.49%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Barton R. Brookman, Jr. purchased 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $32.36 per share, for a total transaction of $226,520.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 14,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $474,591.76. This trade represents a 91.31 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of SM Energy

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its stake in shares of SM Energy by 2.5% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 21,258 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $637,000 after buying an additional 518 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its position in SM Energy by 49.4% in the 1st quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 37,095 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,111,000 after buying an additional 12,261 shares during the last quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC increased its stake in SM Energy by 172.8% in the 1st quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 1,473 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 933 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in SM Energy by 122.3% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 17,723 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $531,000 after buying an additional 9,751 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 80.7% in the first quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,520 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 679 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.