Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. Raises Stock Position in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. raised its stake in shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) by 2.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,866 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 843 shares during the period. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. owned 0.06% of Scotts Miracle-Gro worth $2,159,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the fourth quarter worth $245,000. Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 4th quarter valued at about $412,000. M&T Bank Corp purchased a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 4th quarter worth approximately $205,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 826.3% in the 4th quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 1,482 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 1,322 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amalgamated Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 7.8% during the 4th quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 30,415 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,939,000 after purchasing an additional 2,194 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on SMG. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. Raymond James reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research report on Monday, March 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Truist Financial downgraded Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $65.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $72.57.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,394 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.35, for a total transaction of $79,945.90. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 22,918 shares in the company, valued at $1,314,347.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 86,356 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.41, for a total transaction of $5,648,545.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,777,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $901,154,354.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,394 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.35, for a total value of $79,945.90. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 22,918 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,314,347.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 102,750 shares of company stock worth $6,604,492. 26.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Up 2.7 %

NYSE SMG traded up $1.87 during trading on Friday, hitting $70.54. The stock had a trading volume of 937,423 shares, compared to its average volume of 703,000. The company has a market capitalization of $4.00 billion, a PE ratio of -11.30 and a beta of 1.70. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $69.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $61.18. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a twelve month low of $43.67 and a twelve month high of $77.95.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.69 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.78 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 2.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 24th will be given a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.74%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 23rd. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio is currently -42.31%.

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.