MQS Management LLC Makes New Investment in SM Energy Company (NYSE:SM)

MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in SM Energy Company (NYSE:SM - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 11,618 shares of the energy company's stock, valued at approximately $348,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of SM Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $256,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of SM Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $753,000. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of SM Energy by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 42,920 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $1,664,000 after purchasing an additional 1,978 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its stake in shares of SM Energy by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 12,214 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $473,000 after purchasing an additional 677 shares during the period. Finally, Royce & Associates LP raised its stake in shares of SM Energy by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 232,523 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $9,013,000 after purchasing an additional 14,644 shares during the period. 94.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on SM shares. Raymond James Financial cut SM Energy from an "outperform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. KeyCorp reduced their price objective on SM Energy from $60.00 to $36.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on SM Energy from $39.00 to $24.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Stephens reduced their price objective on SM Energy from $62.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on SM Energy from $33.00 to $29.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $42.08.

SM Energy Stock Down 1.1%

SM Energy stock traded down $0.28 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $26.17. 974,388 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,317,018. The business has a fifty day moving average of $25.51 and a 200 day moving average of $29.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.57. The firm has a market cap of $3.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.66 and a beta of 2.16. SM Energy Company has a 12-month low of $19.67 and a 12-month high of $47.69.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The energy company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.16. SM Energy had a return on equity of 19.90% and a net margin of 27.61%. The firm had revenue of $844.54 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $814.62 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.13 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 50.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that SM Energy Company will post 8.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. SM Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 11.20%.

SM Energy 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.