Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) Price Target Cut to $80.00 by Analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) had its target price reduced by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $85.00 to $80.00 in a research report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $65.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered 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 note on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective 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. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Scotts Miracle-Gro currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $78.60.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SMG traded down $0.74 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $72.25. 949,009 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 813,414. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $80.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $72.40. The company has a market cap of $4.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -106.83 and a beta of 1.76. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 52 week low of $48.29 and a 52 week high of $93.90.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported ($2.31) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.94) by ($0.37). Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 44.97% and a negative net margin of 0.98%. The business had revenue of $414.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $392.95 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Scotts Miracle-Gro will post 3.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.65%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -382.61%.

Insider Activity at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other news, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 2,988 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total value of $211,938.84. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 37,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,689,665.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 2,988 shares of the business’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 $211,938.84. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 37,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,689,665.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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 85,130 shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total value of $6,038,270.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,608,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $965,232,321.34. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 26.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Scotts Miracle-Gro

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SMG. OLD National Bancorp IN grew its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 2.7% during the third quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 5,049 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $438,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Nicollet Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Nicollet Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,845 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,114,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 83.6% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 369 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 80.1% in the second 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 in the last quarter. 74.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.