Peregrine Capital Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in SM Energy (NYSE:SM)

Peregrine Capital Management LLC reduced its position in SM Energy (NYSE:SM) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 123,684 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 4,461 shares during the period. Peregrine Capital Management LLC owned about 0.11% of SM Energy worth $4,794,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SM. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 47.3% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 250,218 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $10,002,000 after purchasing an additional 80,343 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI acquired a new position in shares of SM Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $259,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 79.2% in the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 65,421 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $2,615,000 after purchasing an additional 28,920 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of SM Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $3,048,000. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 144.6% in the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 22,357 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $894,000 after purchasing an additional 13,215 shares during the last quarter. 94.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on SM shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of SM Energy from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $53.00 price target (up previously from $51.00) on shares of SM Energy in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $57.00 price target on shares of SM Energy in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of SM Energy from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of SM Energy from $57.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.90.

SM Energy Stock Performance

SM Energy stock opened at $38.84 on Thursday. SM Energy has a 12-month low of $36.13 and a 12-month high of $53.26. The company has a market capitalization of $4.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.42 and a beta of 4.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 3.52 and a quick ratio of 3.52. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $39.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $41.84.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The energy company reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.09). SM Energy had a return on equity of 19.62% and a net margin of 33.89%. On average, research analysts forecast that SM Energy will post 6.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. SM Energy’s payout ratio is currently 11.17%.

SM Energy Company Profile

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.