Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) Trading Down 3.1% – Time to Sell?

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)’s stock price dropped 3.1% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $83.79 and last traded at $83.87. Approximately 215,524 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 74% from the average daily volume of 815,862 shares. The stock had previously closed at $86.55.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average of $73.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $69.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.74 billion, a PE ratio of -13.36 and a beta of 1.76.

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

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 23rd were issued a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 23rd. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.17%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio is currently -42.31%.

Insider Activity

In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 960 shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.95, for a total transaction of $74,832.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 22,940 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,788,173. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 85,130 shares of the company’s 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 sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 960 shares of the firm’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 transaction of $74,832.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 22,940 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,788,173. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 89,078 shares of company stock valued at $6,325,042 over the last ninety days. 26.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Scotts Miracle-Gro

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Rise Advisors LLC lifted its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 135.2% during the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 80.1% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 389 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 173 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in the second quarter worth about $25,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 41.3% during the second quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 551 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.07% of the company’s stock.

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.