Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC Reduces Holdings in The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM)

Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lowered its stake in shares of The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,458 shares of the company’s stock after selling 158 shares during the quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC’s holdings in J. M. Smucker were worth $601,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Metis Global Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of J. M. Smucker by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 3,540 shares of the company’s stock worth $390,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in shares of J. M. Smucker during the fourth quarter worth about $981,000. Private Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of J. M. Smucker by 26.3% during the third quarter. Private Capital Management LLC now owns 3,838 shares of the company’s stock worth $465,000 after buying an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. Versor Investments LP purchased a new position in shares of J. M. Smucker during the fourth quarter worth about $1,079,000. Finally, First Command Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of J. M. Smucker during the fourth quarter worth about $95,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

J. M. Smucker Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of J. M. Smucker stock opened at $114.17 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The J. M. Smucker Company has a 1-year low of $98.77 and a 1-year high of $127.59. The business has a 50-day moving average of $106.50 and a 200-day moving average of $112.73. The company has a market capitalization of $12.15 billion, a PE ratio of 23.11, a P/E/G ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.28.

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

J. M. Smucker Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $1.08 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.78%. J. M. Smucker’s payout ratio is -179.25%.

Insider Transactions at J. M. Smucker

In other J. M. Smucker news, CFO Tucker H. Marshall sold 994 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.00, for a total value of $112,322.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 18,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,116,942. This trade represents a 5.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 3.40% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. TD Cowen lowered J. M. Smucker from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $130.00 to $121.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. DA Davidson lowered their price objective on J. M. Smucker from $122.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. StockNews.com raised J. M. Smucker from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on J. M. Smucker from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on J. M. Smucker from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $126.00.

J. M. Smucker Profile

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.