Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Invests $666,000 in SM Energy (NYSE:SM)

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in SM Energy (NYSE:SM) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 17,186 shares of the energy company’s stock, valued at approximately $666,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Millburn Ridgefield Corp bought a new stake in shares of SM Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $55,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in SM Energy during the fourth quarter worth $61,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in SM Energy in the third quarter valued at $83,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its stake in SM Energy by 51.0% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,179 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $84,000 after acquiring an additional 736 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its position in shares of SM Energy by 16.7% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,321 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $133,000 after acquiring an additional 476 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.56% of the company’s stock.

SM Energy Price Performance

NYSE:SM opened at $27.41 on Tuesday. SM Energy has a 52 week low of $26.66 and a 52 week high of $53.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 3.52 and a current ratio of 0.55. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $38.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $40.70. The firm has a market cap of $3.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 4.14.

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

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.92%. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.98%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SM. StockNews.com cut shares of SM Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $53.00 price objective (up previously from $51.00) on shares of SM Energy in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on SM Energy from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $57.00 price target on shares of SM Energy in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Williams Trading set a $41.00 price objective on shares of SM Energy in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Barton R. Brookman, Jr. bought 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $32.36 per share, with a total value of $226,520.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 14,666 shares in the company, valued at $474,591.76. This represents a 91.31 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

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.