SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.28 EPS

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) released its earnings results on Wednesday. The energy company reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.28, Briefing.com reports. SM Energy had a net margin of 31.80% and a return on equity of 20.10%. The business had revenue of $634.56 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $616.63 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.28 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis.

SM Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:SM traded down $0.13 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $43.11. 1,979,803 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,766,214. SM Energy has a one year low of $34.13 and a one year high of $53.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 1.48. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $45.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $45.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.96 billion, a PE ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 4.20.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 5th. Investors of record on Friday, July 19th were paid a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 19th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling at SM Energy

In related news, SVP Kenneth J. Knott sold 16,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.28, for a total value of $804,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 114,495 shares in the company, valued at $5,756,808.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of SM Energy from $42.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $63.00 target price on shares of SM Energy in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $54.00 target price on shares of SM Energy in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on SM Energy from $51.00 to $50.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of SM Energy from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $54.44.

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.