Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) Reaches New 1-Year High on Analyst Upgrade

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday after Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on the stock from $75.00 to $81.00. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a hold rating on the stock. Scotts Miracle-Gro traded as high as $91.60 and last traded at $90.74, with a volume of 68462 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $89.66.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on SMG. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $65.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Scotts Miracle-Gro currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $85.25.

Insider Activity at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other news, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 85,130 shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total transaction of $6,038,270.90. Following the sale, the insider now owns 13,608,238 shares in the company, valued at $965,232,321.34. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 2,988 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total transaction of $211,938.84. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 37,920 shares in the company, valued at $2,689,665.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 85,130 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total transaction of $6,038,270.90. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,608,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $965,232,321.34. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 26.46% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Scotts Miracle-Gro

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 24.8% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,726,338 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $203,359,000 after buying an additional 542,406 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 194.2% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 761,063 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $49,515,000 after acquiring an additional 502,353 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 18.2% during the first quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 3,113,153 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $232,210,000 after purchasing an additional 479,315 shares during the last quarter. Interval Partners LP boosted its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 3,581.1% in the first quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 478,546 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,695,000 after purchasing an additional 465,546 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 8,330.2% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 281,485 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $24,405,000 after purchasing an additional 278,146 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.07% of the company’s stock.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $79.90 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $72.02. The company has a market capitalization of $5.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -19.36 and a beta of 1.76.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company Profile

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.