Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in SM Energy (NYSE:SM)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC reduced its position in SM Energy (NYSE:SM) by 35.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 36,095 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 20,159 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in SM Energy were worth $1,398,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. CWM LLC lifted its stake in SM Energy by 11.3% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,683 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $104,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its holdings in SM Energy by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 20,125 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $779,000 after acquiring an additional 286 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of SM Energy by 31.6% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,469 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of SM Energy by 59.7% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 990 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 370 shares during the period. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in shares of SM Energy by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 34,315 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,361,000 after buying an additional 464 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.56% of the company’s stock.

SM Energy Trading Up 0.9 %

SM opened at $51.16 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $48.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.02 and a beta of 4.21. SM Energy has a 12 month low of $25.03 and a 12 month high of $53.26.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last issued 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. SM Energy had a net margin of 31.80% and a return on equity of 20.10%. The company had revenue of $608.73 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $611.35 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.29 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that SM Energy will post 6.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SM Energy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th were paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.41%. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of SM Energy from $45.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. StockNews.com raised shares of SM Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of SM Energy in a report on Monday, February 5th. Susquehanna lifted their price target on SM Energy from $42.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price objective on SM Energy from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $52.57.

SM Energy Company Profile

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.