The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) Shares Purchased by Foster & Motley Inc.

Foster & Motley Inc. lifted its holdings in The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) by 5.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 31,590 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,748 shares during the quarter. Foster & Motley Inc.’s holdings in J. M. Smucker were worth $3,992,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SJM. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in J. M. Smucker by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,559 shares of the company’s stock worth $703,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in J. M. Smucker in the 4th quarter worth $215,000. Ardevora Asset Management LLP purchased a new position in J. M. Smucker in the 4th quarter worth $11,147,000. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI raised its stake in J. M. Smucker by 17.2% in the 4th quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 14,090 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,781,000 after acquiring an additional 2,064 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in J. M. Smucker in the 4th quarter worth $2,654,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on J. M. Smucker from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on J. M. Smucker from $153.00 to $152.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of J. M. Smucker from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $135.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of J. M. Smucker from $126.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of J. M. Smucker from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $137.47.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jeannette L. Knudsen sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.77, for a total value of $399,264.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 8,946 shares in the company, valued at $1,116,192.42. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 3.50% of the company’s stock.

J. M. Smucker Stock Performance

NYSE SJM opened at $117.46 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $120.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $120.66. The J. M. Smucker Company has a 1-year low of $107.33 and a 1-year high of $159.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.38. The company has a market cap of $12.47 billion, a PE ratio of -133.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.21.

J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $2.48 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $2.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.22 billion. J. M. Smucker had a negative net margin of 1.24% and a positive return on equity of 14.29%. J. M. Smucker’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.21 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The J. M. Smucker Company will post 9.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

J. M. Smucker Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be given a $1.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.61%. J. M. Smucker’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -481.81%.

About J. M. Smucker

The J. M. Smucker Company manufactures and markets branded food and beverage products worldwide. It operates in three segments: U.S. Retail Pet Foods, U.S. Retail Coffee, and U.S. Retail Consumer Foods. The company offers mainstream roast, ground, single serve, and premium coffee; peanut butter and specialty spreads; fruit spreads, toppings, and syrups; jelly products; nut mix products; shortening and oils; frozen sandwiches and snacks; pet food and pet snacks; and foodservice hot beverage, foodservice portion control, and flour products, as well as dog and cat food, frozen handheld products, juices and beverages, and baking mixes and ingredients.