Analysts Set SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Price Target at $51.09

Shares of SM Energy (NYSE:SM - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the fourteen brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $51.09.

Several equities analysts have commented on SM shares. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of SM Energy from $50.00 to $48.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $50.00 price objective on shares of SM Energy in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on SM Energy from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on SM Energy from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of SM Energy from $62.00 to $57.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th.

SM Energy Stock Performance

Shares of SM stock traded up $0.57 on Friday, reaching $46.03. The stock had a trading volume of 1,014,664 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,334,863. SM Energy has a 12 month low of $34.13 and a 12 month high of $53.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.43 and a beta of 4.18. The firm's 50-day moving average is $42.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $44.63. The company has a quick ratio of 3.52, a current ratio of 3.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The energy company reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $643.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $643.67 million. SM Energy had a return on equity of 19.62% and a net margin of 33.89%. The business's revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.73 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that SM Energy will post 6.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SM Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 25th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 25th. This is an increase from SM Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.74%. SM Energy's dividend payout ratio is 11.17%.

Institutional Trading of SM Energy

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd raised its position in shares of SM Energy by 461.9% during the second quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 590 shares of the energy company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 485 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of SM Energy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its stake in shares of SM Energy by 63.9% in the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 872 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 340 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new stake in shares of SM Energy during the second quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in SM Energy by 3,434.5% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,025 shares of the energy company's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 996 shares during the last quarter. 94.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.