SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Shares Purchased by Deutsche Bank AG

Deutsche Bank AG increased its stake in shares of SM Energy (NYSE:SM - Free Report) by 39.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 111,699 shares of the energy company's stock after purchasing an additional 31,346 shares during the quarter. Deutsche Bank AG owned 0.10% of SM Energy worth $4,329,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of SM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in SM Energy by 22.0% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,632,255 shares of the energy company's stock worth $179,546,000 after purchasing an additional 835,929 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in SM Energy by 40.1% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,683,131 shares of the energy company's stock worth $103,998,000 after purchasing an additional 767,779 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in SM Energy during the 4th quarter worth $22,059,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in SM Energy by 214.7% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 519,302 shares of the energy company's stock worth $20,128,000 after purchasing an additional 354,297 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in SM Energy by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,682,093 shares of the energy company's stock worth $142,718,000 after purchasing an additional 296,601 shares in the last quarter. 94.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Susquehanna lowered their target price on SM Energy from $39.00 to $24.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Mizuho lowered their target price on SM Energy from $46.00 to $42.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Wall Street Zen downgraded SM Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on SM Energy from $45.00 to $33.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, KeyCorp decreased their price target on SM Energy from $60.00 to $36.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $42.92.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Barton R. Brookman, Jr. bought 7,000 shares of SM Energy stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $32.36 per share, with a total value of $226,520.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 14,666 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $474,591.76. This trade represents a 91.31% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

SM Energy Stock Performance

Shares of SM Energy stock traded down $0.04 on Friday, hitting $23.14. The stock had a trading volume of 1,602,130 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,971,534. SM Energy has a 52-week low of $19.67 and a 52-week high of $50.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 3.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market cap of $2.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 2.17. The company's 50 day moving average price is $24.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $33.94.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The energy company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.16. SM Energy had a return on equity of 19.82% and a net margin of 28.63%. The business had revenue of $844.54 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $814.62 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.13 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 50.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that SM Energy will post 8.1 EPS for the current year.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 18th were issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 17th. SM Energy's payout ratio is currently 11.20%.

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.