Vestcor Inc Purchases 23,114 Shares of SM Energy Company (NYSE:SM)

Key Points

• Vestcor Inc increased its stake in SM Energy by 97.9% during the first quarter, holding 46,727 shares valued at approximately $1.4 million.
• SM Energy reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $1.50, exceeding the consensus estimate by $0.27, with a revenue of $792.94 million during the last quarter.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, yielding 3.0%, to be paid to shareholders on August 4th.

Vestcor Inc lifted its holdings in shares of SM Energy Company (NYSE:SM - Free Report) by 97.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 46,727 shares of the energy company's stock after buying an additional 23,114 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc's holdings in SM Energy were worth $1,399,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in shares of SM Energy by 64.5% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,730 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $183,000 after acquiring an additional 1,854 shares during the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 12.7% during the first quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 8,355 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $250,000 after buying an additional 941 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its stake in shares of SM Energy by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 21,258 shares of the energy company's stock worth $637,000 after acquiring an additional 518 shares in the last quarter. Range Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in SM Energy by 16.9% in the 1st quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 25,119 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $752,000 after acquiring an additional 3,624 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of SM Energy by 272.7% during the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 433,834 shares of the energy company's stock worth $12,993,000 after purchasing an additional 317,421 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.56% of the company's stock.

SM Energy Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of NYSE:SM traded down $0.50 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $26.91. 1,002,570 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,295,237. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. SM Energy Company has a 1-year low of $19.67 and a 1-year high of $47.69. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $26.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $28.38. The firm has a market cap of $3.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 2.29.

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

SM Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 4th. Investors of record on Friday, July 18th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 18th. SM Energy's payout ratio is presently 11.30%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of SM Energy from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Stephens dropped their target price on shares of SM Energy from $62.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of SM Energy from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. TD Cowen raised shares of SM Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Raymond James Financial cut shares of SM Energy from an "outperform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $42.50.

SM Energy Company 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.