The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $70.3333.

SMG has been the subject of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $67.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $61.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $71.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $70.00 price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 6th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Scotts Miracle-Gro

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 4th quarter worth about $1,423,000. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC now owns 54,435 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,201,000 after acquiring an additional 3,262 shares during the last quarter. DMC Group LLC acquired a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $244,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 46.6% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 230,966 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $14,692,000 after purchasing an additional 73,455 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC now owns 12,548 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $732,000 after purchasing an additional 658 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.07% of the company’s stock.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

Shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock opened at $62.32 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $57.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $59.62. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a fifty-two week low of $45.61 and a fifty-two week high of $79.11. The firm has a market cap of $3.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.75 and a beta of 1.95.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The basic materials company reported ($1.96) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.88) by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $387.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $396.75 million. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 67.74% and a net margin of 4.26%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($2.31) EPS. Scotts Miracle-Gro has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.150-4.350 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Scotts Miracle-Gro will post 3.42 EPS for the current year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 21st were given a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 21st. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 109.09%.

About Scotts Miracle-Gro

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company is a leading developer, manufacturer and distributor of consumer lawn and garden products. The firm serves both retail and professional customers through an array of branded offerings that include lawn fertilizers, grass seed, pest and disease control solutions, plant foods and specialty products for indoor and outdoor gardening. Its portfolio spans well-known names such as Scotts®, Miracle-Gro®, Ortho® and various hydroponic and specialty garden brands.

Headquartered in Marysville, Ohio, the company traces its roots to O.M.