Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Stifel Nicolaus Analyst Says

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) had its price objective upped by investment analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $75.00 to $76.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price objective suggests a potential upside of 15.64% from the company’s current price.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $79.00 price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research report on Friday. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. 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. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $75.40.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SMG opened at $65.72 on Monday. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 1 year low of $52.00 and a 1 year high of $75.34. The company has a market cap of $3.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.15 and a beta of 1.81. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $64.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $64.29.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.34. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 81.90% and a net margin of 2.19%.The company had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.59 EPS. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Scotts Miracle-Gro will post 4.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,171 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.32, for a total transaction of $80,002.72. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 30,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,061,829.28. This represents a 3.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 24.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SMG. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 13.1% during the 2nd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 41,952 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,857,000 after acquiring an additional 4,843 shares during the last quarter. Abound Wealth Management raised its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 49.6% in the 2nd quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 3,582 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $244,000 after purchasing an additional 1,187 shares during the period. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 394.1% during the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 751 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 599 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 7.3% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,200 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $218,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased 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 buying an additional 1,549 shares in the last quarter. 74.07% of the stock is currently owned by 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.