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

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, April 23rd, Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 24th will be paid a dividend of 0.66 per share by the basic materials company on Friday, June 7th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.85%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 23rd.

Scotts Miracle-Gro has raised its dividend payment by an average of 3.2% per year over the last three years. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a dividend payout ratio of 66.3% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Scotts Miracle-Gro to earn $3.80 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 69.5%.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of SMG stock traded up $0.69 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $68.58. 449,045 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 739,124. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $67.14 and a 200 day moving average of $59.98. The firm has a market cap of $3.89 billion, a PE ratio of -9.64 and a beta of 1.70. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 1 year low of $43.67 and a 1 year high of $77.95.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The basic materials company reported ($1.45) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.62) by $0.17. The business had revenue of $410.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $412.83 million. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative net margin of 11.52% and a negative return on equity of 44.37%. The business’s revenue was down 22.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($1.02) earnings per share. Analysts expect that Scotts Miracle-Gro will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,394 shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.35, for a total transaction of $79,945.90. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 22,918 shares in the company, valued at $1,314,347.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,394 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.35, for a total transaction of $79,945.90. Following the sale, the director now owns 22,918 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,314,347.30. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 86,356 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.41, for a total value of $5,648,545.96. Following the sale, the director now owns 13,777,012 shares in the company, valued at approximately $901,154,354.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 102,750 shares of company stock valued at $6,604,492. 26.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on SMG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Raymond James restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. StockNews.com raised shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Truist Financial downgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $65.00 to $75.00 in a report on Friday, April 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $70.00.

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.