The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) Holdings Increased by EP Wealth Advisors LLC

EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) by 11.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,080 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in J. M. Smucker were worth $229,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of J. M. Smucker by 17.9% during the fourth quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 660 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Utah Retirement Systems raised its holdings in shares of J. M. Smucker by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 17,146 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,888,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont raised its holdings in shares of J. M. Smucker by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 2,731 shares of the company’s stock valued at $301,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the period. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of J. M. Smucker by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,845 shares of the company’s stock valued at $203,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the period. Finally, Mendel Money Management raised its holdings in shares of J. M. Smucker by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Mendel Money Management now owns 3,933 shares of the company’s stock valued at $433,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on SJM. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of J. M. Smucker in a report on Monday, March 24th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $123.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group began coverage on shares of J. M. Smucker in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $134.00 price objective on the stock. DA Davidson lowered their price objective on shares of J. M. Smucker from $122.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com raised shares of J. M. Smucker from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of J. M. Smucker from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $126.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at J. M. Smucker

In other J. M. Smucker news, insider Jill R. Penrose sold 5,117 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.26, for a total value of $594,902.42. Following the sale, the insider now owns 8,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,022,390.44. This trade represents a 36.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Tucker H. Marshall sold 5,028 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.36, for a total transaction of $569,974.08. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 13,263 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,503,493.68. The trade was a 27.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.40% of the company’s stock.

J. M. Smucker Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of J. M. Smucker stock opened at $111.49 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.57, a PEG ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.36. The J. M. Smucker Company has a 12-month low of $98.77 and a 12-month high of $125.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $114.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $111.32.

J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $2.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.37 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.23 billion. J. M. Smucker had a return on equity of 14.35% and a net margin of 5.96%. Equities analysts expect that The J. M. Smucker Company will post 9.88 earnings per share for the current year.

J. M. Smucker Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $1.08 dividend. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. J. M. Smucker’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -179.25%.

About J. M. Smucker

The J. M. Smucker Company manufactures and markets branded food and beverage products worldwide. It operates in three segments: U.S. Retail Pet Foods, U.S. Retail Coffee, and U.S. Retail Consumer Foods. The company offers mainstream roast, ground, single serve, and premium coffee; peanut butter and specialty spreads; fruit spreads, toppings, and syrups; jelly products; nut mix products; shortening and oils; frozen sandwiches and snacks; pet food and pet snacks; and foodservice hot beverage, foodservice portion control, and flour products, as well as dog and cat food, frozen handheld products, juices and beverages, and baking mixes and ingredients.