SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of SM Energy (NYSE:SM) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

SM has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of SM Energy in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. KeyCorp decreased their price target on SM Energy from $36.00 to $28.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on SM Energy from $35.00 to $29.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Mizuho set a $34.00 target price on SM Energy in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Roth Mkm set a $28.00 price target on SM Energy in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $32.80.

SM Energy Stock Up 8.4%

SM Energy stock opened at $23.50 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $19.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $22.00. SM Energy has a 1-year low of $17.45 and a 1-year high of $39.40. The company has a market cap of $2.69 billion, a PE ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.56 and a quick ratio of 0.56.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 26th were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 26th. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.62%.

Institutional Trading of SM Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. NBC Securities Inc. raised its holdings in SM Energy by 160.5% in the 4th quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,347 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 830 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of SM Energy by 10,461.5% in the fourth quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 1,373 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,360 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its position in shares of SM Energy by 62.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,386 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 535 shares during the period. First Horizon Corp acquired a new position in SM Energy in the third quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in SM Energy during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.56% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting SM Energy

Here are the key news stories impacting SM Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: SM agreed to sell select South Texas assets to Caturus Energy for $950 million in cash — proceeds are earmarked to accelerate deleveraging, lower debt and strengthen the balance sheet, which should improve credit metrics and reduce financial risk. SM ENERGY ANNOUNCES AGREEMENT TO SELL $950 MILLION IN ASSETS SM Energy to sell some Texas assets for $950 million
• Positive Sentiment: An analyst move upward: Zacks Research upgraded SM from “strong sell” to “hold,” a small vote of confidence that may support the rally or limit downside as the company executes its asset-sale plan. Zacks.com
• Neutral Sentiment: SM is scheduled to report quarterly results this week — investors should watch production, realized prices, capex guidance and how management plans to deploy or use remaining proceeds after the asset sale. SM Energy (SM) to Release Earnings on Wednesday
• Neutral Sentiment: Consensus analyst coverage sits around a “Hold” rating on average — reinforcing that the market is split between valuing deleveraging progress and near-term execution/earnings uncertainty. SM Energy Company (NYSE:SM) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks notes analysts expect SM to report a decline in earnings and says the company lacks the key elements typically tied to an earnings beat — weaker-than-expected EPS in the print could pressure the stock despite the balance-sheet improvement from the asset sale. Analysts Estimate SM Energy (SM) to Report a Decline in Earnings

About SM Energy

SM Energy Company (NYSE: SM) is an independent energy firm engaged in the exploration, development, and production of crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids in the United States. The company focuses on identifying and exploiting unconventional onshore basins, leveraging advanced drilling and completion techniques to optimize resource recovery. SM Energy’s operations are supported by an integrated approach to reservoir management and strategic midstream partnerships, enabling efficient transportation and marketing of hydrocarbons.

The company’s core asset areas include prolific basins such as the Permian, Eagle Ford, and the Rocky Mountain region.