The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Lowers Position in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company decreased its stake in shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 41,834 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 689 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.07% of Scotts Miracle-Gro worth $3,627,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of SMG. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 427.0% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 332 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 83.6% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 369 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.07% of the company’s stock.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Trading Down 0.0 %

SMG opened at $75.47 on Friday. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a twelve month low of $53.43 and a twelve month high of $93.90. The firm has a market cap of $4.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -109.38 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $82.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $73.43.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.50%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio is presently -382.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on SMG shares. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $78.60.

Insider Transactions at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, CEO James Hagedorn sold 18,368 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.68, for a total transaction of $1,390,090.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 87,426 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,616,399.68. This trade represents a 17.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 28,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.91, for a total transaction of $2,125,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 13,553,774 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,028,866,984.34. This trade represents a 0.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 46,868 shares of company stock valued at $3,554,140. 26.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.