The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) has earned an average rating of “Hold” from the six ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $73.00.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on SMG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. Raymond James restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a report on Monday, March 25th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Trading Down 3.1 %

NYSE SMG opened at $69.18 on Wednesday. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 12 month low of $43.67 and a 12 month high of $77.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.92 billion, a PE ratio of -11.09 and a beta of 1.70. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $69.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $61.59.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.36. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative net margin of 10.14% and a negative return on equity of 20.97%. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.78 EPS. The company’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Scotts Miracle-Gro will post 2.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 24th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 23rd. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s payout ratio is -42.31%.

Insider Activity at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,394 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.35, for a total value of $79,945.90. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 22,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,314,347.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,394 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.35, for a total transaction of $79,945.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 22,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,314,347.30. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.40, for a total value of $876,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,881,368 shares in the company, valued at approximately $810,671,891.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 102,750 shares of company stock valued at $6,604,492. 26.46% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in SMG. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 29.2% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 96,707 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,998,000 after buying an additional 21,834 shares in the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System lifted its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 4.3% during the third quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 51,480 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,660,000 after acquiring an additional 2,134 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 18.8% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 6,465 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $334,000 after purchasing an additional 1,024 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 3rd quarter valued at $316,000. Finally, Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 28.2% during the 3rd quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC now owns 8,159 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $422,000 after purchasing an additional 1,795 shares during the last quarter. 74.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Scotts Miracle-Gro

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and sells products for lawn, garden care, and indoor and hydroponic gardening in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: U.S. Consumer, Hawthorne, and Other. The company provides lawn care products, comprising lawn fertilizers, grass seed products, spreaders, and other durable products, as well as lawn-related weed, pest, and disease control products; and gardening and landscape products, which include water-soluble and continuous-release plant foods, potting mixes, garden soils, mulches and ground cover products, plant-related pest and disease control products, organic garden products, and live goods and seeding solutions.