SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Trading 5.9% Higher After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of SM Energy Company (NYSE:SM) shot up 5.9% during trading on Friday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded the stock from a neutral rating to an overweight rating. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now has a $40.00 price target on the stock. SM Energy traded as high as $29.43 and last traded at $29.3970. 2,252,133 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 68% from the average session volume of 6,954,490 shares. The stock had previously closed at $27.75.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on SM. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on shares of SM Energy from $35.00 to $29.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of SM Energy from $20.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. KeyCorp cut their target price on SM Energy from $36.00 to $28.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. National Bank Financial set a $30.00 price target on SM Energy in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price target on shares of SM Energy in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.09.

Key SM Energy News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Global oil-risk rally lifts upstream names — renewed Middle East conflict fears and targeted strikes on gas infrastructure have driven WTI and Brent sharply higher this month, boosting expectations for higher cash flow at U.S. E&P companies like SM. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Company deleveraging and shareholder-return steps are supporting the rally — SM agreed to sell South Texas assets for ~$950M, has an upsized $1.0B senior note sale to fund a tender offer for 2028 notes, and raised its base dividend by 10%. Management says proceeds will prioritize debt reduction, improving financial flexibility and payout credibility. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan upgrade — the firm moved SM from Neutral to Overweight with a $40 price target, providing a notable buy-side analyst catalyst and signaling confidence in the company’s outlook and capital-plan execution. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst activity — Wells Fargo raised its target to $25 (Equal Weight) while TD Cowen set a $30 target; Street sentiment remains varied (consensus = Hold), so analyst noise could keep intraday swings elevated. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor commentary and valuation narratives — recent pieces (e.g., Seeking Alpha) argue SM remains a value/bargain play versus peers, which can attract longer-term buyers but may have limited near-term impact vs. macro-driven moves. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Large institutional rebalancing — Q4 2025 filings show several big managers materially reduced positions, even as some funds added shares; concentrated selling by a few large holders could add volatility if continued. Article Title

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SM Energy

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Congress Asset Management Co. grew its holdings in shares of SM Energy by 19.9% in the third quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 1,212,775 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $30,283,000 after acquiring an additional 201,704 shares in the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in SM Energy by 33.1% during the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 294,546 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $7,278,000 after acquiring an additional 73,240 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH boosted its position in SM Energy by 135.2% in the third quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 254,766 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $6,362,000 after purchasing an additional 146,444 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in SM Energy in the third quarter worth $1,190,000. Finally, Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in SM Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $4,619,000. 94.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

SM Energy Trading Up 8.3%

The stock has a market capitalization of $3.44 billion, a PE ratio of 5.32 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $22.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $21.74.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The energy company reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $704.92 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $764.40 million. SM Energy had a net margin of 20.55% and a return on equity of 13.47%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.91 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that SM Energy Company will post 8.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SM Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th will be 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 is Monday, March 9th. This is an increase from SM Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.58%.

SM Energy Company Profile

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.