SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Receives $55.11 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of SM Energy (NYSE:SM) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $54.89.

SM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of SM Energy from $45.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Susquehanna boosted their price target on SM Energy from $42.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Mizuho raised their price objective on SM Energy from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. KeyCorp upped their target price on SM Energy from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on SM Energy from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 10th.

Insider Activity at SM Energy

In related news, SVP Kenneth J. Knott sold 16,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.28, for a total value of $804,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 114,495 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,756,808.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of SM Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Boston Partners lifted its stake in shares of SM Energy by 6.1% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 18,606 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $928,000 after purchasing an additional 1,065 shares during the period. Atria Investments Inc acquired a new stake in SM Energy in the 1st quarter worth about $1,096,000. Adams Wealth Management increased its position in shares of SM Energy by 26.7% during the first quarter. Adams Wealth Management now owns 52,546 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $2,619,000 after purchasing an additional 11,077 shares in the last quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 5.0% during the first quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 181,733 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $9,059,000 after buying an additional 8,653 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bayesian Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in SM Energy during the 1st quarter valued at about $368,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.56% of the company’s stock.

SM Energy Trading Up 1.0 %

SM opened at $43.66 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 1.48. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $48.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $44.49. SM Energy has a one year low of $29.51 and a one year high of $53.26. The stock has a market cap of $5.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.84 and a beta of 4.20.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The energy company reported $1.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.13. SM Energy had a return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 31.80%. The company had revenue of $559.87 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $568.21 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that SM Energy will post 6.69 EPS for the current year.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 19th will be issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 19th. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.29%.

About SM Energy

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.