Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD Has $203.36 Million Holdings in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) by 24.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,726,338 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 542,406 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD owned approximately 4.80% of Scotts Miracle-Gro worth $203,359,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,699,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 4,927.1% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 228,178 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $14,546,000 after acquiring an additional 223,639 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 4th quarter worth approximately $12,482,000. Thornburg Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,399,000. Finally, Simplicity Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the first quarter valued at approximately $4,756,000. 74.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

Shares of SMG traded up $2.29 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $70.61. The stock had a trading volume of 1,076,704 shares, compared to its average volume of 807,758. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.32 and a beta of 1.76. The company’s fifty day moving average is $65.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $65.36. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 52 week low of $43.67 and a 52 week high of $77.95.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.36. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative net margin of 10.14% and a negative return on equity of 20.97%. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.78 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 31,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.67, for a total value of $2,159,770.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 13,746,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $957,684,656.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 26.46% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on SMG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $83.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. StockNews.com raised shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Truist Financial downgraded Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $65.00 to $75.00 in a report on Friday, April 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $71.67.

About Scotts Miracle-Gro

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.