Mizuho Trims SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Target Price to $57.00

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) had its target price cut by Mizuho from $62.00 to $57.00 in a report published on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the energy company’s stock.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the company. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. raised SM Energy from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on SM Energy from $55.00 to $50.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Stephens reissued an overweight rating and set a $63.00 price target on shares of SM Energy in a report on Thursday, June 27th. StockNews.com lowered SM Energy from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Tudor Pickering raised SM Energy to a strong-buy rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, SM Energy currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $53.22.

SM Energy Stock Performance

Shares of SM opened at $41.49 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. SM Energy has a one year low of $34.13 and a one year high of $53.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.50 and a beta of 4.19. The business has a fifty day moving average of $43.74 and a 200 day moving average of $46.64.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The energy company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.28. SM Energy had a return on equity of 21.01% and a net margin of 33.18%. The company had revenue of $634.56 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $616.63 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.28 earnings per share. SM Energy’s revenue was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that SM Energy will post 7.57 EPS for the current year.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 5th. Investors of record on Friday, July 19th were paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 19th. SM Energy’s payout ratio is presently 11.29%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SM Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its stake in shares of SM Energy by 30.7% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 10,907 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $422,000 after purchasing an additional 2,565 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of SM Energy by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 23,931 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $927,000 after purchasing an additional 2,668 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE lifted its stake in shares of SM Energy by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 52,651 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $2,039,000 after purchasing an additional 493 shares during the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC lifted its stake in shares of SM Energy by 19.3% in the 4th quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 37,843 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,445,000 after purchasing an additional 6,133 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Congress Wealth Management LLC DE bought a new stake in shares of SM Energy in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,140,000. 94.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.