Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) Hits New 12-Month Low – Here’s What Happened

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Monday. The stock traded as low as $49.83 and last traded at $50.4090, with a volume of 42291 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $50.89.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on SMG shares. Wall Street Zen cut Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $74.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Scotts Miracle-Gro has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $75.40.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Down 0.2%

The firm has a market cap of $2.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.27 and a beta of 1.83. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $61.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $62.26.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.34. The firm had revenue of $1.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 81.90% and a net margin of 2.19%.Scotts Miracle-Gro’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.59 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 4.39 EPS for the current year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st were paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 21st. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s payout ratio is 229.57%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.45, for a total value of $2,023,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 13,137,641 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $886,133,885.45. This represents a 0.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Stephen Johnson sold 1,171 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.32, for a total transaction of $80,002.72. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 30,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,061,829.28. This trade represents a 3.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 32,002 shares of company stock worth $2,154,734 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 24.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Scotts Miracle-Gro

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 394.1% during the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 751 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 599 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 64.9% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 963 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 379 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 661.9% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,219 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 1,059 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the fourth quarter worth $81,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.07% of the company’s stock.

About Scotts Miracle-Gro

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company is a manufacturer and marketer of branded consumer lawn and garden products. Founded in 1868 and headquartered in Marysville, Ohio, the company serves homeowners and gardening enthusiasts through products designed for growing, feeding, protecting and maintaining plants and lawns.

Its portfolio includes lawn fertilizers, grass seed, gardening soils, plant foods, weed and pest controls, and related gardening products. Well-known brands include Scotts, Miracle-Gro, Turf Builder, Ortho, Tomcat and Earthgro.