Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) Shares Down 5.2% – Here’s What Happened

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) dropped 5.2% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $65.39 and last traded at $65.2740. 61,173 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 93% from the average daily volume of 926,860 shares. The stock had previously closed at $68.85.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SMG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $76.00 to $75.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $79.00 price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $72.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.67.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Down 3.2%

The company has a market cap of $3.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.22 and a beta of 1.81. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $62.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $63.02.

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

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 5th. Investors of record on Friday, May 22nd were issued a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 22nd. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 147.49%.

Institutional Trading of Scotts Miracle-Gro

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SMG. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 1,130.7% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,686 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $115,000 after acquiring an additional 1,549 shares during the period. Hilltop National Bank grew its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 81.7% during the 2nd quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 1,641 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $112,000 after acquiring an additional 738 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 60.7% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 8,555 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $520,000 after purchasing an additional 3,232 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 16.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 658,602 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $40,050,000 after purchasing an additional 92,614 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 661.9% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,219 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $74,000 after purchasing an additional 1,059 shares during the period. 74.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.