SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Receives Sector Perform Rating from Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada reiterated their sector perform rating on shares of SM Energy (NYSE:SM) in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $54.00 price objective on the energy company’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped 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. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of SM Energy from $51.00 to $49.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of SM Energy from $49.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Mizuho upped their price target on SM Energy from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price objective on SM Energy from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $54.89.

SM Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SM opened at $45.32 on Wednesday. SM Energy has a 52 week low of $29.51 and a 52 week high of $53.26. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $48.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $44.54. The company has a market cap of $5.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.10 and a beta of 4.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $559.87 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $568.21 million. Research analysts predict that SM Energy will post 6.7 earnings per share for the current year.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 19th will be given a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 19th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.59%. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Kenneth J. Knott sold 16,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $5,756,808.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SM Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SM. Natixis Advisors L.P. grew its holdings in SM Energy by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 43,190 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,712,000 after buying an additional 3,726 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of SM Energy by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 15,415 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $611,000 after buying an additional 502 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 58.7% during the 3rd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 15,315 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $606,000 after buying an additional 5,666 shares during the last quarter. AXQ Capital LP acquired a new stake in SM Energy during the third quarter worth about $278,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 44.5% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,163,332 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $46,126,000 after purchasing an additional 358,253 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.56% of the company’s stock.

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.