Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) Trading Up 5.2% Following Dividend Announcement

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)’s stock price was up 5.2% on Monday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock traded as high as $77.46 and last traded at $77.55. Approximately 395,661 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 21% from the average daily volume of 501,392 shares. The stock had previously closed at $73.73.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s payout ratio is presently -382.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. UBS Group cut their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $77.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $72.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $75.83.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Down 5.9 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $4.10 billion, a P/E ratio of -103.27 and a beta of 1.73. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $71.59 and a 200-day moving average of $74.66.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported ($0.89) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.23) by $0.34. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 44.97% and a negative net margin of 0.98%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($1.45) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 3.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 11,359 shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.37, for a total transaction of $856,127.83. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 51,631 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,891,428.47. This trade represents a 18.03 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 28,000 shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.91, for a total value of $2,125,480.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,553,774 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,028,866,984.34. The trade was a 0.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 58,227 shares of company stock valued at $4,410,268 over the last three months. Insiders own 25.37% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Scotts Miracle-Gro

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SMG. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 1,033.4% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 364,045 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,563,000 after acquiring an additional 331,925 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 8,330.2% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 281,485 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $24,405,000 after acquiring an additional 278,146 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 228.0% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 252,798 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $21,918,000 after purchasing an additional 175,719 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,172,800 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $275,082,000 after buying an additional 151,354 shares in the last quarter. Finally, De Lisle Partners LLP acquired a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 3rd quarter worth $10,162,000. 74.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.