SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

SM Energy (NYSE:SM - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on SM Energy from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Truist Financial assumed coverage on SM Energy in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. They set a "buy" rating and a $38.00 target price on the stock. National Bank Financial set a $30.00 price target on SM Energy in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Mizuho set a $34.00 price target on SM Energy in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Siebert Williams Shank downgraded SM Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $33.62.

SM Energy Stock Performance

SM opened at $29.42 on Friday. The company's 50 day moving average is $28.12 and its 200 day moving average is $22.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The company has a market cap of $7.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.36 and a beta of 0.73. SM Energy has a 12-month low of $17.45 and a 12-month high of $33.25.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The energy company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.42. SM Energy had a net margin of 3.45% and a return on equity of 13.93%. The business had revenue of $1.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.42 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.76 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 75.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that SM Energy will post 6.86 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SM Energy

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in SM. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of SM Energy by 79.5% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,995,353 shares of the energy company's stock worth $311,678,000 after purchasing an additional 4,426,751 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in SM Energy by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,257,360 shares of the energy company's stock worth $118,267,000 after purchasing an additional 107,295 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in SM Energy by 8.9% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,585,624 shares of the energy company's stock worth $114,503,000 after purchasing an additional 375,754 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in SM Energy by 205.1% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,835,718 shares of the energy company's stock worth $53,028,000 after purchasing an additional 1,906,255 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in SM Energy by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,721,147 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $50,897,000 after buying an additional 56,187 shares in the last quarter. 94.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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