Victory Capital Management Inc. Buys 20,748 Shares of The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM)

Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) by 13.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 172,860 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 20,748 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in J. M. Smucker were worth $19,035,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of SJM. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its stake in shares of J. M. Smucker by 188.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 231 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Kentucky Trust Co bought a new position in shares of J. M. Smucker during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in J. M. Smucker by 1,329.4% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 243 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of J. M. Smucker in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of J. M. Smucker in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at J. M. Smucker

In related news, CFO Tucker H. Marshall sold 994 shares of J. M. Smucker stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.00, for a total transaction of $112,322.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,116,942. The trade was a 5.04 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 3.40% of the company’s stock.

J. M. Smucker Stock Performance

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

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

J. M. Smucker Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

About J. M. Smucker

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.