Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.08 EPS

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The basic materials company reported ($1.96) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.88) by ($0.08), Zacks reports. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 60.46% and a net margin of 1.54%.The company had revenue of $387.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $396.75 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($2.31) earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Scotts Miracle-Gro updated its FY 2025 guidance to 4.150-4.350 EPS.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Up 3.8%

NYSE:SMG traded up $2.14 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $58.16. The company had a trading volume of 287,689 shares, compared to its average volume of 963,115. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $57.64 and a two-hundred day moving average of $60.44. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a one year low of $45.61 and a one year high of $83.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.36 billion, a PE ratio of 76.42 and a beta of 1.96.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 21st will be given a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 21st. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio is 347.37%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on SMG shares. Truist Financial set a $80.00 price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 19th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $70.00 price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Wall Street Zen downgraded Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $71.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 56,633 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.02, for a total transaction of $3,569,011.66. Following the sale, the director owned 13,217,641 shares in the company, valued at approximately $832,975,735.82. This represents a 0.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Mark J. Scheiwer purchased 1,790 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $61.32 per share, for a total transaction of $109,762.80. Following the completion of the purchase, the executive vice president directly owned 10,130 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $621,171.60. The trade was a 21.46% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 25.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Scotts Miracle-Gro

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 26.3% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 7,524 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $413,000 after purchasing an additional 1,569 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 18.5% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 149,882 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $8,227,000 after buying an additional 23,446 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. raised its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 34.6% in the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 4,745 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $342,000 after buying an additional 1,219 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 71.2% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 247,749 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $16,342,000 after buying an additional 102,997 shares during the period. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 2nd quarter valued at $309,000. 74.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.