SM Energy’s (SM) “Overweight” Rating Reiterated at Stephens

Stephens restated their overweight rating on shares of SM Energy (NYSE:SM) in a research report sent to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $57.00 price target on the energy company’s stock.

SM has been the topic of several other reports. StockNews.com downgraded SM Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of SM Energy from $50.00 to $48.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $53.00 price objective (up from $51.00) on shares of SM Energy in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of SM Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their target price for the company from $64.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of SM Energy in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.64.

SM Energy Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of SM opened at $40.58 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 3.52 and a quick ratio of 3.52. SM Energy has a 1-year low of $34.76 and a 1-year high of $53.26. The stock has a market cap of $4.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.67 and a beta of 4.14. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.01.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy company reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.10. SM Energy had a net margin of 33.89% and a return on equity of 19.62%. The firm had revenue of $643.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $643.67 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.73 earnings per share. SM Energy’s revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that SM Energy will post 6.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SM Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.97%. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.17%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SM Energy

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of SM Energy by 11.4% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,853 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in SM Energy by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,843 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $234,000 after buying an additional 380 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in SM Energy by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 32,403 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,401,000 after buying an additional 437 shares during the period. KBC Group NV increased its stake in SM Energy by 16.7% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,321 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $133,000 after buying an additional 476 shares during the period. Finally, Plato Investment Management Ltd raised its position in shares of SM Energy by 461.9% during the 2nd quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 590 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 485 shares in the last quarter. 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.