KeyCorp Boosts SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Price Target to $65.00

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) had its price target upped by KeyCorp from $62.00 to $65.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. KeyCorp currently has an overweight rating on the energy company’s stock.

SM has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a sector perform rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of SM Energy in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of SM Energy from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Mizuho increased their price target on SM Energy from $51.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on SM Energy from $45.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Raymond James dropped their target price on SM Energy from $53.00 to $45.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $52.57.

SM Energy Trading Up 0.9 %

NYSE SM opened at $50.44 on Monday. SM Energy has a 12-month low of $25.03 and a 12-month high of $53.26. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $47.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The stock has a market cap of $5.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.34 and a beta of 4.20.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last issued its 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 company had revenue of $608.73 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $611.35 million. SM Energy had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 34.45%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.29 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that SM Energy will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

SM Energy Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.43%. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.48%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SM Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of SM Energy by 54.9% in the first quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 581 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 665.6% during the 1st quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 689 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 599 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates lifted its holdings in SM Energy by 1.7% in the first quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 163,582 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $8,155,000 after acquiring an additional 2,723 shares during the last quarter. Norden Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of SM Energy in the 1st quarter valued at $477,000. Finally, Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV increased its position in shares of SM Energy by 31.1% during the 1st quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 13,351 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $666,000 after purchasing an additional 3,171 shares during the last quarter. 94.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.