Congress Wealth Management LLC DE Grows Position in SM Energy (NYSE:SM)

Congress Wealth Management LLC DE lifted its position in shares of SM Energy (NYSE:SM) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 116,589 shares of the energy company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,816 shares during the quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE’s holdings in SM Energy were worth $4,519,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Millburn Ridgefield Corp purchased a new position in shares of SM Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $55,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of SM Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of SM Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $83,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of SM Energy by 51.0% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,179 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $84,000 after buying an additional 736 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in SM Energy by 517.9% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 4,140 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $159,000 after acquiring an additional 3,470 shares during the period. 94.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

SM Energy Trading Down 3.9 %

Shares of SM stock opened at $30.57 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 3.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. SM Energy has a twelve month low of $26.66 and a twelve month high of $53.26. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $35.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.60. The stock has a market cap of $3.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.58 and a beta of 4.14.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The energy company reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $852.22 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $849.44 million. SM Energy had a net margin of 28.63% and a return on equity of 19.82%. As a group, equities analysts predict that SM Energy will post 8.1 earnings per share for the current year.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.62%. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.98%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of SM Energy from $57.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. Raymond James decreased their price target on shares of SM Energy from $59.00 to $40.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on SM Energy from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Williams Trading set a $41.00 target price on SM Energy in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on SM Energy from $54.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $48.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at SM Energy

In related news, Director Barton R. Brookman, Jr. purchased 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $32.36 per share, for a total transaction of $226,520.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,666 shares in the company, valued at approximately $474,591.76. The trade was a 91.31 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

SM Energy 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.