Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co Grows Stock Holdings in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company $SMG

Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co increased its stake in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) by 101.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 41,408 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,843 shares during the quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co owned 0.07% of Scotts Miracle-Gro worth $2,358,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in SMG. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 26.3% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 7,524 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $413,000 after purchasing an additional 1,569 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 18.5% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 149,882 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $8,227,000 after buying an additional 23,446 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management increased its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 32.1% during the second quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 725 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 31.0% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 46,401 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,061,000 after buying an additional 10,992 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 5.5% in the second quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 6,766 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $446,000 after acquiring an additional 351 shares during the period. 74.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Mark J. Scheiwer bought 693 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $71.44 per share, for a total transaction of $49,507.92. Following the acquisition, the executive vice president owned 15,370 shares in the company, valued at $1,098,032.80. This trade represents a 4.72% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.40, for a total value of $3,320,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 13,167,641 shares in the company, valued at $874,331,362.40. The trade was a 0.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 24.40% of the company’s stock.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

SMG stock opened at $68.98 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $64.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $59.92. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a fifty-two week low of $45.61 and a fifty-two week high of $72.35. The firm has a market cap of $4.00 billion, a PE ratio of 46.93 and a beta of 1.96.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The basic materials company reported ($0.77) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.04) by $0.27. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a net margin of 2.68% and a negative return on equity of 68.59%. The company had revenue of $354.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $353.25 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.89) earnings per share. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s revenue was down 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Scotts Miracle-Gro has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.150-4.35 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 3.42 EPS for the current year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 20th. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s payout ratio is presently 179.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $71.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. UBS Group set a $67.00 price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.50.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company Profile

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.