SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Stock Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• SM Energy shares recently crossed above their 200-day moving average
• Analysts collectively rate the stock a "Moderate Buy" with a consensus target of $33.62, and several firms have upgraded to overweight/buy with targets as high as $40.
• The company has a market cap of $6.9B and a PE ratio of 5.09; it beat Q4 EPS estimates ($0.83 vs. $0.73) despite revenue falling 17.3% YoY, and it raised the quarterly dividend to $0.22 (3.1% yield).

Shares of SM Energy Company (NYSE:SM - Get Free Report) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $22.24 and traded as high as $29.34. SM Energy shares last traded at $28.7820, with a volume of 3,138,831 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on SM shares. National Bank Financial set a $30.00 price objective on shares of SM Energy in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Mizuho set a $34.00 price objective on shares of SM Energy in a research report on Friday, January 9th. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of SM Energy from $29.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of SM Energy in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $38.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of SM Energy from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $40.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, SM Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $33.62.

SM Energy Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $6.90 billion, a PE ratio of 5.09 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $27.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.69.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The energy company reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $704.92 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $764.40 million. SM Energy had a return on equity of 13.47% and a net margin of 20.55%.SM Energy's revenue for the quarter was down 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.91 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that SM Energy Company will post 6.85 EPS for the current year.

SM Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 9th were paid a $0.22 dividend. This is an increase from SM Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 9th. SM Energy's payout ratio is currently 15.58%.

Institutional Trading of SM Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SM. NBC Securities Inc. boosted its stake in SM Energy by 160.5% in the fourth quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,347 shares of the energy company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 830 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in SM Energy by 10,461.5% in the fourth quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 1,373 shares of the energy company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 1,360 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of SM Energy by 62.9% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,386 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 535 shares during the period. First Horizon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of SM Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of SM Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.56% of the company's stock.

SM Energy Company Profile

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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