StockNews.com Upgrades SM Energy (NYSE:SM) to “Buy”

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Monday.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of SM Energy from $45.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Mizuho increased their price objective on SM Energy from $51.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on SM Energy from $42.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. KeyCorp increased their price target on SM Energy from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of SM Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $52.57.

SM Energy Stock Up 1.6 %

SM Energy stock traded up $0.76 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $48.85. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,096,314 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,582,816. SM Energy has a 52-week low of $25.03 and a 52-week high of $53.26. The company has a market cap of $5.65 billion, a PE ratio of 7.11 and a beta of 4.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.45. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $46.42 and its 200 day moving average is $41.04.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The energy company reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $608.73 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $611.35 million. SM Energy had a net margin of 34.45% and a return on equity of 20.74%. The firm’s revenue was down 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.29 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that SM Energy will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of SM Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Raymond James & Associates grew its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 163,582 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $8,155,000 after purchasing an additional 2,723 shares in the last quarter. Norden Group LLC bought a new position in SM Energy in the first quarter worth $477,000. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV boosted its stake in SM Energy by 31.1% during the first quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 13,351 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $666,000 after buying an additional 3,171 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in SM Energy by 12.2% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 842,960 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $42,022,000 after buying an additional 91,507 shares during the period. Finally, Congress Wealth Management LLC DE raised its stake in shares of SM Energy by 28.9% in the 1st quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 104,545 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $5,212,000 after buying an additional 23,438 shares in the last quarter. 94.56% of the stock is currently 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.