Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) Stock Price Up 4.6%

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) shares shot up 4.6% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $77.60 and last traded at $77.25. 631,858 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 22% from the average session volume of 813,320 shares. The stock had previously closed at $73.88.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on SMG shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $80.00.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Up 5.5 %

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $70.16 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $68.73. The company has a market capitalization of $4.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -12.11 and a beta of 1.75.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $2.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.42. The firm had revenue of $1.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.20 billion. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative net margin of 7.38% and a negative return on equity of 41.19%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.17 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 2.62 EPS for the current year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Investors of record on Friday, August 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 23rd. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.39%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -42.31%.

Insider Activity at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 960 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.95, for a total transaction of $74,832.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 22,940 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,788,173. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 960 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.95, for a total value of $74,832.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 22,940 shares in the company, valued at $1,788,173. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 85,130 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total transaction of $6,038,270.90. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 13,608,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $965,232,321.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 89,078 shares of company stock worth $6,325,042 over the last three months. Company insiders own 26.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Scotts Miracle-Gro

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Teacher Retirement System of Texas purchased a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 4th quarter valued at $417,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,699,000. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the fourth quarter worth $83,000. Commerce Bank grew its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 121.3% in the fourth quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 19,281 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,229,000 after purchasing an additional 10,567 shares during the period. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 400.9% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 64,540 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,162,000 after buying an additional 51,656 shares during the period. 74.07% of the stock is 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.