SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Shares of SM Energy (NYSE:SM) gapped up prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $23.42, but opened at $24.49. SM Energy shares last traded at $23.99, with a volume of 329,471 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $34.00 target price (up previously from $30.00) on shares of SM Energy in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. KeyCorp decreased their price target on shares of SM Energy from $60.00 to $36.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of SM Energy from $45.00 to $33.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Stephens decreased their price target on shares of SM Energy from $62.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of SM Energy from $46.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $42.42.

SM Energy Trading Up 3.0%

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.76 billion, a PE ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 2.17. The company has a quick ratio of 3.52, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $23.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $33.23.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The energy company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.60 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $844.54 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $814.62 million. SM Energy had a net margin of 28.63% and a return on equity of 19.82%. The business’s revenue was up 50.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.13 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that SM Energy will post 8.1 EPS for the current year.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 5th. Investors of record on Friday, April 18th were paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.32%. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.20%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Gallacher Capital Management LLC lifted its position in SM Energy by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Gallacher Capital Management LLC now owns 8,206 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $318,000 after buying an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in SM Energy by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 11,970 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $464,000 after buying an additional 379 shares during the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in SM Energy by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 97,800 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $3,791,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its stake in SM Energy by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 6,718 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $260,000 after purchasing an additional 402 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in SM Energy by 69.5% during the first quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,017 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 417 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.56% of the company’s stock.

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.