Probity Advisors Inc. Has $1.01 Million Stock Holdings in The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM)

Probity Advisors Inc. increased its position in The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) by 4.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 9,143 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 352 shares during the quarter. Probity Advisors Inc.’s holdings in J. M. Smucker were worth $1,007,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SJM. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its stake in J. M. Smucker by 188.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 231 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 151 shares during the period. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in J. M. Smucker during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Kentucky Trust Co bought a new position in shares of J. M. Smucker in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of J. M. Smucker during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. acquired a new position in J. M. Smucker in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at J. M. Smucker

In other J. M. Smucker news, insider Jill R. Penrose sold 5,117 shares of J. M. Smucker stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.26, for a total value of $594,902.42. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 8,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,022,390.44. The trade was a 36.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Tucker H. Marshall sold 5,028 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.36, for a total value of $569,974.08. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 13,263 shares in the company, valued at $1,503,493.68. The trade was a 27.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.40% of the company’s stock.

J. M. Smucker Stock Performance

Shares of J. M. Smucker stock opened at $112.69 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $114.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $111.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.81, a P/E/G ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.36. The J. M. Smucker Company has a fifty-two week low of $98.77 and a fifty-two week high of $125.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.27.

J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $2.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.37 by $0.24. J. M. Smucker had a return on equity of 14.35% and a net margin of 5.96%. The company had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.23 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that The J. M. Smucker Company will post 9.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

J. M. Smucker Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $1.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.83%. J. M. Smucker’s dividend payout ratio is presently -179.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays reduced their price objective on J. M. Smucker from $123.00 to $119.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Citigroup decreased their price objective on J. M. Smucker from $129.00 to $128.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 19th. Wall Street Zen raised J. M. Smucker from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 28th. DA Davidson decreased their price target on shares of J. M. Smucker from $122.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of J. M. Smucker in a research note on Monday, March 24th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $123.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $125.70.

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.