SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Shares Down 4.4% – Here’s Why

SM Energy Company (NYSE:SM)’s stock price was down 4.4% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $39.34 and last traded at $39.4880. Approximately 454,070 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 91% from the average session volume of 5,083,779 shares. The stock had previously closed at $41.29.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on SM. Roth Capital upgraded SM Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $30.00 to $32.00 in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded SM Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $32.00 to $47.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Stephens cut their target price on SM Energy from $61.00 to $52.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Raymond James Financial reduced their price target on SM Energy from $55.00 to $48.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Mizuho raised SM Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $39.38.

SM Energy Stock Down 3.2%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.27 and a beta of 0.75. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $34.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $30.98.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The energy company reported $2.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.02 billion. SM Energy had a return on equity of 17.93% and a net margin of 18.20%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 215.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.50 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that SM Energy Company will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current year.

SM Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 7th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. SM Energy’s payout ratio is currently 17.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling at SM Energy

In related news, Director Ashwin Venkatraman sold 3,650 shares of SM Energy stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.28, for a total transaction of $139,722.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 12,525 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $479,457. The trade was a 22.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP James Barker Lebeck sold 17,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.02, for a total transaction of $647,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 14,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $544,379.10. This trade represents a 54.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.45% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SM Energy

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Torren Management LLC lifted its position in SM Energy by 4,561.1% in the 1st quarter. Torren Management LLC now owns 839 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 821 shares in the last quarter. Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in SM Energy in the second quarter worth $28,000. Center for Financial Planning Inc. bought a new stake in SM Energy in the first quarter worth $31,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in SM Energy during the first quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. acquired a new position in SM Energy during the first quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors own 94.56% of the company’s stock.

About SM Energy

SM Energy Company (NYSE: SM) is an independent energy company engaged in the exploration, development and production of oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. Its operations focus on acquiring and developing oil and gas properties and producing hydrocarbons from onshore assets in the United States.

The company’s principal operations are concentrated in the Permian Basin of West Texas and the South Texas region. SM Energy has also expanded its U.S. operating portfolio through acquisitions, including assets in Utah’s Uinta Basin.