HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC Makes New Investment in SM Energy Company $SM

Key Points

• HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC has invested approximately $44 million in SM Energy Company, acquiring 1,469,289 shares, which now represents about 2.7% of its investment portfolio.
• SM Energy reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.50, exceeding analysts' expectations, with a revenue increase of 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.20, yielding 3.1% annually, with a low dividend payout ratio of 11.30%.

HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of SM Energy Company (NYSE:SM - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,469,289 shares of the energy company's stock, valued at approximately $44,005,000. SM Energy makes up about 2.7% of HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC owned about 1.28% of SM Energy as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in SM Energy by 0.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,269,443 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $457,320,000 after purchasing an additional 69,933 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in SM Energy by 6.2% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,909,004 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $117,075,000 after purchasing an additional 226,911 shares in the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. raised its stake in SM Energy by 51.4% during the first quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 3,207,245 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $96,057,000 after purchasing an additional 1,088,948 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in SM Energy by 40.1% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,683,131 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $103,998,000 after purchasing an additional 767,779 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its position in SM Energy by 169.4% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,873,860 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $56,122,000 after acquiring an additional 1,178,397 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.56% of the company's stock.

SM Energy Trading Up 6.9%

Shares of NYSE SM traded up $1.7950 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $27.7150. The company had a trading volume of 2,246,633 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,050,518. The business's 50-day moving average is $26.68 and its 200-day moving average is $27.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market cap of $3.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 2.29. SM Energy Company has a 52 week low of $19.67 and a 52 week high of $47.69.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The energy company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $792.94 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $792.58 million. SM Energy had a net margin of 25.94% and a return on equity of 18.06%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.85 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that SM Energy Company will post 8.1 earnings per share for the current year.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 18th were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 18th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. SM Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 11.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of SM Energy from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of SM Energy from $33.00 to $29.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of SM Energy from an "outperform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of SM Energy from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, TD Cowen raised shares of SM Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, SM Energy has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $42.50.

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.