Ruffer LLP Invests $728,000 in SM Energy (NYSE:SM)

Ruffer LLP bought a new position in shares of SM Energy (NYSE:SM) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 18,783 shares of the energy company’s stock, valued at approximately $728,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of SM Energy by 16.7% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,321 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $133,000 after acquiring an additional 476 shares during the period. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in SM Energy by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 33,392 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,294,000 after purchasing an additional 556 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in SM Energy by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,746 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $270,000 after purchasing an additional 590 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC boosted its stake in SM Energy by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 24,739 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $959,000 after purchasing an additional 605 shares during the period. Finally, Heritage Family Offices LLP boosted its stake in SM Energy by 13.2% in the 4th quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 6,237 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $242,000 after purchasing an additional 726 shares during the period. 94.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Barton R. Brookman, Jr. bought 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $32.36 per share, with a total value of $226,520.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 14,666 shares in the company, valued at $474,591.76. This trade represents a 91.31 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $57.00 price target on shares of SM Energy in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $53.00 price target (up from $51.00) on shares of SM Energy in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on SM Energy from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Mizuho reduced their price target on SM Energy from $57.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on SM Energy from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.90.

SM Energy Price Performance

Shares of SM opened at $27.56 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $38.23 and a 200-day moving average of $40.84. SM Energy has a 1 year low of $26.66 and a 1 year high of $53.26. The company has a market capitalization of $3.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 4.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 3.52.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The energy company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.00 by ($0.09). SM Energy had a return on equity of 19.82% and a net margin of 28.63%. The business had revenue of $852.22 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $849.44 million. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that SM Energy will post 8.1 earnings per share for the current year.

SM Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.90%. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 11.98%.

SM Energy 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.