Marshall Wace LLP Invests $6.53 Million in SM Energy (NYSE:SM)

Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of SM Energy (NYSE:SM - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 168,381 shares of the energy company's stock, valued at approximately $6,526,000. Marshall Wace LLP owned about 0.15% of SM Energy at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in SM Energy by 47.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 250,218 shares of the energy company's stock worth $10,002,000 after purchasing an additional 80,343 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of SM Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $3,048,000. Tidal Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of SM Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $445,000. DGS Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in SM Energy by 88.4% in the 3rd quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 10,910 shares of the energy company's stock worth $436,000 after purchasing an additional 5,119 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Insight Wealth Strategies LLC grew its holdings in SM Energy by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 51,084 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $1,980,000 after purchasing an additional 2,801 shares during the last quarter. 94.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

SM Energy Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of SM Energy stock traded up $0.31 during trading on Friday, reaching $23.48. 1,368,989 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,889,583. SM Energy has a 1-year low of $19.67 and a 1-year high of $51.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.69 billion, a PE ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 3.75. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $27.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $36.68. 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 - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The energy company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.00 by ($0.09). The company 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%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that SM Energy will post 8.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. SM Energy's dividend payout ratio is 11.98%.

Insider Transactions at SM Energy

In other SM Energy news, Director Barton R. Brookman, Jr. bought 7,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $32.36 per share, with a total value of $226,520.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,666 shares in the company, valued at $474,591.76. This trade represents a 91.31 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SM has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on SM Energy from $45.00 to $33.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. StockNews.com cut shares of SM Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Raymond James cut their price target on SM Energy from $59.00 to $40.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 10th. Williams Trading set a $41.00 price objective on SM Energy in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, KeyCorp reduced 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $44.00.

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.