The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Shareholders to Get $0.66 Quarterly Dividend

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share by the basic materials company on Friday, December 4th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 20th.

Scotts Miracle-Gro has decreased its dividend payment by an average of 0.2% annually over the last three years. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a payout ratio of 62.9% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Scotts Miracle-Gro to earn $4.67 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.64 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 56.5%.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Down 5.2%

NYSE SMG opened at $61.74 on Wednesday. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a fifty-two week low of $47.90 and a fifty-two week high of $75.34. The stock has a market cap of $3.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.69 and a beta of 1.87. The business has a fifty day moving average of $55.41 and a 200-day moving average of $61.91.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The basic materials company reported ($2.16) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($2.21) by $0.05. The business had revenue of $302.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $306.11 million. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 81.90% and a net margin of 2.19%. The business’s revenue was down 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($2.63) earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Scotts Miracle-Gro will post 4.39 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other news, Director Mark D. Kingdon sold 831 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.65, for a total transaction of $51,231.15. Following the sale, the director owned 10,827 shares in the company, valued at $667,484.55. This trade represents a 7.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 24.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Scotts Miracle-Gro

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Kestrel Investment Management Corp purchased a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the first quarter worth about $2,390,000. Madison Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 2nd quarter valued at about $7,163,000. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 182.2% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 66,698 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,057,000 after buying an additional 43,066 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,323,000. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LP increased its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 500.3% during the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 114,728 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $7,814,000 after acquiring an additional 95,616 shares during the last quarter. 74.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company Profile

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company is a provider of consumer lawn and garden products headquartered in Marysville, Ohio. The company develops and markets products designed to help consumers grow and maintain lawns, gardens, landscapes and indoor plants.

Its portfolio includes lawn fertilizers, grass seed, plant food, gardening products, pest-control solutions, soils and related growing supplies. Key consumer brands include Scotts, Miracle-Gro, Ortho and Tomcat. The company also has a history of serving the controlled-environment agriculture and hydroponics markets through specialized growing products and supplies.

Scotts Miracle-Gro was founded in 1868 and has built a broad distribution network serving retail customers, garden centers and other outlets.