Fisher Asset Management LLC Sells 28,560 Shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)

Fisher Asset Management LLC lowered its position in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) by 12.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 193,900 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 28,560 shares during the quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC owned 0.34% of Scotts Miracle-Gro worth $12,361,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SMG. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the fourth quarter worth about $47,000. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the third quarter worth approximately $52,000. Covestor Ltd raised its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 23.7% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,376 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $71,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 318.4% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,686 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $99,000 after acquiring an additional 1,283 shares in the last quarter. 74.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

Scotts Miracle-Gro stock opened at $70.54 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $69.06 and a 200-day moving average of $61.18. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 1 year low of $43.67 and a 1 year high of $77.95.

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

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.74%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio is presently -42.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on SMG shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Raymond James reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a report on Monday, March 25th. Truist Financial downgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $65.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $73.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other news, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 86,356 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.41, for a total transaction of $5,648,545.96. Following the sale, the director now owns 13,777,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $901,154,354.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 86,356 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.41, for a total value of $5,648,545.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 13,777,012 shares in the company, valued at $901,154,354.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,394 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director now owns 22,918 shares in the company, valued at $1,314,347.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 102,750 shares of company stock valued at $6,604,492. Company insiders own 26.46% of the company’s stock.

Scotts Miracle-Gro 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.