Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Purchases Shares of 19,424 SM Energy (NYSE:SM)

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in SM Energy (NYSE:SM) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 19,424 shares of the energy company’s stock, valued at approximately $753,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Millburn Ridgefield Corp bought a new position in SM Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $55,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in SM Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in SM Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $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 buying an additional 736 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its stake in SM Energy by 16.7% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,321 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $133,000 after buying an additional 476 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.56% of the company’s stock.

SM Energy Price Performance

Shares of SM opened at $30.68 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $3.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.59 and a beta of 4.14. SM Energy has a 1-year low of $26.66 and a 1-year high of $53.26. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $36.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.77. 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 (NYSE:SM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The energy company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.09). SM Energy had a net margin of 28.63% and a return on equity of 19.82%. The company had revenue of $852.22 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $849.44 million. On average, research analysts forecast that SM Energy will post 8.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 dividend yield of 2.61%. SM Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at SM Energy

In related news, Director Barton R. Brookman, Jr. acquired 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, for a total transaction of $226,520.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 14,666 shares in the company, valued at approximately $474,591.76. This trade represents a 91.31 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of SM Energy from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $57.00 price objective on shares of SM Energy in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. StockNews.com lowered shares of SM Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of SM Energy from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. 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 issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $49.00.

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.