SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Hold

StockNews.com downgraded shares of SM Energy (NYSE:SM) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Thursday morning.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on SM. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on SM Energy from $51.00 to $50.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on SM Energy from $49.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Stephens restated an overweight rating and issued a $63.00 price objective on shares of SM Energy in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Susquehanna upped their price objective on SM Energy from $42.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price objective on SM Energy from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $54.44.

SM Energy Trading Down 7.4 %

SM traded down $3.27 during trading on Thursday, hitting $40.86. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 651,146 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,713,927. SM Energy has a twelve month low of $34.13 and a twelve month high of $53.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $46.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.92 and a beta of 4.20.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The energy company reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.13. SM Energy had a return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 31.80%. The company had revenue of $559.87 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $568.21 million. Analysts anticipate that SM Energy will post 7.09 EPS for the current year.

SM Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 19th will be paid a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 19th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.76%. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.29%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other SM Energy news, SVP Kenneth J. Knott sold 16,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.28, for a total value of $804,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 114,495 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,756,808.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Trust Point Inc. bought a new position in shares of SM Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $544,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 3,772.2% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,394 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 1,358 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of SM Energy by 17.6% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 62,164 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $2,407,000 after buying an additional 9,285 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 39.8% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 751,453 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $29,096,000 after acquiring an additional 213,866 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY purchased a new position in SM Energy in the fourth quarter worth $3,373,000. Institutional investors own 94.56% of the company’s stock.

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.