The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) has received an average rating of “Hold” from the five brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $83.75.

Several research analysts recently commented on SMG shares. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $65.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:SMG opened at $87.93 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $78.85 and a 200 day moving average of $71.60. The company has a market capitalization of $5.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -18.59 and a beta of 1.76. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 52 week low of $43.98 and a 52 week high of $91.09.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $2.31 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.42. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 41.19% and a negative net margin of 7.38%. The firm had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.20 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.17 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Scotts Miracle-Gro will post 2.62 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In related news, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 85,130 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total transaction of $6,038,270.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,608,238 shares in the company, valued at $965,232,321.34. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 2,988 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total value of $211,938.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 37,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,689,665.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 85,130 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total value of $6,038,270.90. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 13,608,238 shares in the company, valued at $965,232,321.34. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 89,078 shares of company stock worth $6,325,042 over the last 90 days. 26.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Scotts Miracle-Gro

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 72.6% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 42,928 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,202,000 after purchasing an additional 18,060 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 18.4% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 230,616 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $17,218,000 after acquiring an additional 35,825 shares in the last quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board lifted its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 155.1% in the first quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 37,172 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,773,000 after acquiring an additional 22,599 shares in the last quarter. Scientech Research LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the second quarter worth approximately $866,000. Finally, Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 309.5% in the 2nd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 215,717 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $14,035,000 after purchasing an additional 163,037 shares during the last quarter. 74.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company 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.