Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Decreases Position in SM Energy (NYSE:SM)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans decreased its stake in SM Energy (NYSE:SM) by 37.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 141,762 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 85,213 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned about 0.12% of SM Energy worth $5,495,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of SM. Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new position in shares of SM Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $415,000. Gallacher Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in SM Energy by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Gallacher Capital Management LLC now owns 8,206 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $318,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP grew its position in SM Energy by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 232,523 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $9,013,000 after acquiring an additional 14,644 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its stake in SM Energy by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 12,214 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $473,000 after purchasing an additional 677 shares during the period. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of SM Energy by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 42,920 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $1,664,000 after purchasing an additional 1,978 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

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

SM Energy Trading Up 3.8 %

SM Energy stock opened at $31.83 on Tuesday. 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 stock has a market cap of $3.64 billion, a PE ratio of 4.77 and a beta of 4.14. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $35.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.67. SM Energy has a one year low of $26.66 and a one year high of $53.26.

SM Energy (NYSE:SM) last announced 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). The company 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%. On average, research analysts anticipate that SM Energy will post 8.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SM Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.51%. SM Energy’s payout ratio is currently 11.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of SM Energy from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. StockNews.com lowered shares of SM Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of SM Energy from $54.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on SM Energy from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $57.00 target price on shares of SM Energy in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, SM Energy 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.