Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) Shares Up 6.7% – What’s Next?

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)’s share price rose 6.7% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $69.11 and last traded at $68.4470. 313,227 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average session volume of 920,675 shares. The stock had previously closed at $64.12.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on SMG shares. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $79.00 price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $76.00 to $75.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 8th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $63.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $73.00.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $4.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.92 and a beta of 1.81. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $62.52 and a 200 day moving average of $63.54.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The basic materials company reported $4.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.97 by $0.56. The firm had revenue of $1.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.41 billion. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 79.61% and a net margin of 3.27%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.98 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 4.3 EPS for the current year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 22nd were paid a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 22nd. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 147.49%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SMG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 21.4% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 155,498 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $8,856,000 after purchasing an additional 27,422 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 46.6% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 230,966 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $14,692,000 after purchasing an additional 73,455 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 14.5% in the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,154,815 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $65,767,000 after purchasing an additional 146,192 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 223.3% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 29,239 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,706,000 after purchasing an additional 20,196 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL lifted its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 9.7% during the 4th quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 387,170 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $22,591,000 after buying an additional 34,350 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.07% of the company’s stock.

About Scotts Miracle-Gro

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company is a leading developer, manufacturer and distributor of consumer lawn and garden products. The firm serves both retail and professional customers through an array of branded offerings that include lawn fertilizers, grass seed, pest and disease control solutions, plant foods and specialty products for indoor and outdoor gardening. Its portfolio spans well-known names such as Scotts®, Miracle-Gro®, Ortho® and various hydroponic and specialty garden brands.

Headquartered in Marysville, Ohio, the company traces its roots to O.M.