Susquehanna Lowers SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Price Target to $24.00

SM Energy (NYSE:SM - Get Free Report) had its price objective lowered by stock analysts at Susquehanna from $39.00 to $24.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "neutral" rating on the energy company's stock. Susquehanna's target price suggests a potential upside of 2.21% from the company's previous close.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of SM Energy from $45.00 to $33.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Williams Trading set a $41.00 price target on shares of SM Energy in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Stephens cut their price target on shares of SM Energy from $62.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Raymond James decreased their price objective on SM Energy from $59.00 to $40.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, KeyCorp lowered their target price on SM Energy from $60.00 to $36.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, SM Energy currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $44.00.

SM Energy Price Performance

NYSE:SM traded up $0.31 on Tuesday, hitting $23.48. The company had a trading volume of 1,368,989 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,889,583. SM Energy has a 52 week low of $19.67 and a 52 week high of $51.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 3.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 3.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $27.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.68.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The energy company reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.00 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $852.22 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $849.44 million. SM Energy had a return on equity of 19.82% and a net margin of 28.63%. On average, research analysts anticipate that SM Energy will post 8.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Barton R. Brookman, Jr. acquired 7,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $32.36 per share, for a total transaction of $226,520.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 14,666 shares in the company, valued at $474,591.76. The trade was a 91.31 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Peregrine Capital Management LLC lifted its position in SM Energy by 31.7% in the 1st quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC now owns 162,849 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $4,877,000 after acquiring an additional 39,165 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co raised its stake in shares of SM Energy by 31.8% during the 1st quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 28,704 shares of the energy company's stock worth $860,000 after purchasing an additional 6,928 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 21,258 shares of the energy company's stock worth $637,000 after buying an additional 518 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its position in SM Energy by 49.4% during the first quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 37,095 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $1,111,000 after buying an additional 12,261 shares during the period. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC raised its position in SM Energy by 172.8% in the first quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 1,473 shares of the energy company's stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 933 shares during the period. 94.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About SM Energy

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.