Ruffer LLP Purchases Shares of 18,783 SM Energy (NYSE:SM)

Ruffer LLP purchased a new stake in shares of SM Energy (NYSE:SM) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 18,783 shares of the energy company’s stock, valued at approximately $728,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp raised its holdings in SM Energy by 1.9% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,287,815 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $251,324,000 after acquiring an additional 114,664 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of SM Energy by 2,515.6% during the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,463,443 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $178,404,000 after purchasing an additional 4,292,793 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of SM Energy by 1.1% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,693,372 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $107,675,000 after purchasing an additional 29,911 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of SM Energy by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,255,841 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $48,676,000 after purchasing an additional 32,803 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in SM Energy by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,234,890 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $47,864,000 after acquiring an additional 25,857 shares in the last quarter. 94.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of SM Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of SM Energy from $57.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $57.00 target price on shares of SM Energy in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of SM Energy from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of SM Energy from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, SM Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.90.

SM Energy Stock Up 1.5 %

SM stock opened at $27.56 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 3.52, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. SM Energy has a twelve month low of $26.66 and a twelve month high of $53.26. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $38.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $40.84. The company has a market cap of $3.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 4.14.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The energy company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $852.22 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $849.44 million. SM Energy had a net margin of 28.63% and a return on equity of 19.82%. Analysts anticipate that SM Energy will post 8.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

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.