SM Energy Company $SM Shares Bought by AlphaQuest LLC

Key Points

• AlphaQuest LLC sharply increased its stake in SM Energy, buying more than 80,000 shares in the fourth quarter and lifting its holdings by 3,238.1% to 83,220 shares worth about $1.56 million.
• SM Energy reported solid quarterly results, posting EPS of $1.55 versus the $1.13 consensus and revenue of $1.48 billion, with revenue up 75% from a year earlier.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, equal to an annualized yield of 2.9%, while analysts currently view the stock as a Moderate Buy with an average target price of $37.07.

AlphaQuest LLC increased its holdings in SM Energy Company (NYSE:SM - Free Report) by 3,238.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 83,220 shares of the energy company's stock after buying an additional 80,727 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC owned about 0.07% of SM Energy worth $1,556,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of SM Energy by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,921,769 shares of the energy company's stock worth $147,876,000 after purchasing an additional 30,951 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of SM Energy by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,585,624 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $114,503,000 after buying an additional 375,754 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP lifted its position in shares of SM Energy by 198.9% during the 3rd quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 2,429,518 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $60,665,000 after buying an additional 1,616,822 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of SM Energy by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,323,065 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $58,007,000 after buying an additional 33,751 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in SM Energy by 53.5% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,756,496 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $43,860,000 after purchasing an additional 612,444 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.56% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Zacks Research lowered SM Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on SM Energy from $36.00 to $30.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Mizuho raised their price objective on SM Energy from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday. National Bank Financial set a $30.00 price objective on SM Energy in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded SM Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $37.07.

Insider Activity at SM Energy

In other news, Director Ramiro G. Peru sold 24,553 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.98, for a total transaction of $834,310.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 65,964 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,241,456.72. The trade was a 27.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.45% of the company's stock.

SM Energy Stock Down 3.4%

Shares of NYSE:SM opened at $30.70 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.90 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $30.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $23.75. SM Energy Company has a 12-month low of $17.45 and a 12-month high of $35.88.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The energy company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.42. The company had revenue of $1.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.42 billion. SM Energy had a return on equity of 13.93% and a net margin of 3.45%.SM Energy's revenue was up 75.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.76 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that SM Energy Company will post 7.47 EPS for the current year.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. SM Energy's payout ratio is currently 36.97%.

About SM Energy

SM Energy Company NYSE: SM is an independent energy firm engaged in the exploration, development, and production of crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids in the United States. The company focuses on identifying and exploiting unconventional onshore basins, leveraging advanced drilling and completion techniques to optimize resource recovery. SM Energy's operations are supported by an integrated approach to reservoir management and strategic midstream partnerships, enabling efficient transportation and marketing of hydrocarbons.

The company's core asset areas include prolific basins such as the Permian, Eagle Ford, and the Rocky Mountain region.

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