SM Energy Company (NYSE:SM) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is moderately bullish: Sixteen analysts give SM Energy a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, with nine buys, six holds, and one strong buy. The average 12-month price target is $36.93, above the reported share price of $31.71.
• SM Energy exceeded quarterly expectations: The company reported earnings of $2.19 per share versus the $1.96 consensus estimate and revenue of $2.50 billion versus $2.02 billion expected. Revenue increased 215.3% year over year.
• The company pays a quarterly dividend: SM Energy’s $0.22 quarterly dividend equates to $0.88 annually and a 2.8% yield, with a dividend payout ratio of 17.32%.

Shares of SM Energy Company (NYSE:SM - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the sixteen analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, nine have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $36.9333.

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James Financial reduced their target price on shares of SM Energy from $55.00 to $48.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on SM Energy from $29.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Wall Street Zen raised SM Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. UBS Group initiated coverage on SM Energy in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $36.00 target price for the company. Finally, Mizuho upgraded SM Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st.

SM Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SM opened at $31.71 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.24 and a beta of 0.73. The company's 50-day moving average is $29.77 and its 200 day moving average is $27.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.62. SM Energy has a fifty-two week low of $17.45 and a fifty-two week high of $35.88.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The energy company reported $2.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.02 billion. SM Energy had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 17.93%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 215.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.50 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that SM Energy will post 6.95 earnings per share for the current year.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th were issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 8th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. SM Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other SM Energy news, Director Ramiro G. Peru sold 24,553 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.98, for a total transaction of $834,310.94. Following the sale, the director directly owned 65,964 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,241,456.72. This represents a 27.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.45% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of SM Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. NBC Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in SM Energy by 160.5% in the 4th quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,347 shares of the energy company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 830 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of SM Energy by 10,461.5% during the fourth quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 1,373 shares of the energy company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,360 shares in the last quarter. Torren Management LLC lifted its position in shares of SM Energy by 4,561.1% during the first quarter. Torren Management LLC now owns 839 shares of the energy company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 821 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 62.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,386 shares of the energy company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 535 shares during the period. Finally, Center for Financial Planning Inc. bought a new position in shares of SM Energy in the first quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors own 94.56% of the company's stock.

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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