24,638 SM Energy Company $SM Shares Purchased by Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS grew its stake in SM Energy Company (NYSE:SM) by 24.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 126,280 shares of the energy company’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,638 shares during the period. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS’s holdings in SM Energy were worth $4,266,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of SM Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,025,229,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new position in shares of SM Energy during the second quarter valued at about $378,288,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of SM Energy by 79.5% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,995,353 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $311,678,000 after buying an additional 4,426,751 shares during the period. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. bought a new stake in shares of SM Energy in the second quarter valued at about $199,602,000. Finally, Webs Creek Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of SM Energy in the second quarter valued at about $53,257,807. Institutional investors own 94.56% of the company’s stock.

SM Energy Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of SM opened at $29.83 on Monday. SM Energy Company has a 1 year low of $17.45 and a 1 year high of $41.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $36.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $30.58. The stock has a market cap of $7.01 billion, a PE ratio of 7.24 and a beta of 0.80.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 3rd. The energy company reported $1.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by ($0.06). SM Energy had a net margin of 13.69% and a return on equity of 20.48%. The company had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.33 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 167.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that SM Energy Company will post 8.00 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SM Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 7th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 4th. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 21.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on SM shares. Seaport Research Partners assumed coverage on SM Energy in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. They set a “sell” rating and a $35.00 price target on the stock. Scotiabank started coverage on SM Energy in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $39.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho set a $39.00 price objective on SM Energy in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on SM Energy from $36.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on SM Energy in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $42.00 price objective on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, SM Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $39.82.

Insider Activity at SM Energy

In other SM Energy news, Director Ashwin Venkatraman sold 3,650 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.28, for a total value of $139,722.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 12,525 shares in the company, valued at approximately $479,457. This trade represents a 22.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP James Barker Lebeck sold 17,500 shares of SM Energy stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.02, for a total value of $647,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 14,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $544,379.10. The trade was a 54.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.45% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About SM Energy

SM Energy Company is an independent oil and gas company focused on acquiring, exploring, developing and producing crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. Its operations are concentrated in Texas, including the Midland Basin in the Permian Basin and the South Texas region.

The company’s business includes developing oil and gas properties and managing the infrastructure and operations needed to bring production to market. Its portfolio has evolved over time as SM Energy has made acquisitions and divested assets to focus on its core areas.

Founded in 1908 as St.