The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) has received an average rating of “Hold” from the seven analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $77.50.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $72.00 target price for the company. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 7th.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Down 5.4 %

Shares of NYSE SMG opened at $68.50 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $3.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -99.28 and a beta of 1.71. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a twelve month low of $53.43 and a twelve month high of $93.90. The company’s fifty day moving average is $80.06 and its 200-day moving average is $73.82.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were issued a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.85%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -382.61%.

Insider Transactions at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 11,359 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.37, for a total value of $856,127.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 51,631 shares in the company, valued at $3,891,428.47. This trade represents a 18.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.14, for a total value of $38,570.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,553,274 shares in the company, valued at $1,045,499,556.36. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 58,227 shares of company stock valued at $4,410,268 over the last 90 days. 26.46% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Scotts Miracle-Gro

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SMG. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the third quarter valued at $26,000. 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 valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in 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 during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. bought a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. 74.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.