Independent Family Office LLC Trims Holdings in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)

Independent Family Office LLC decreased its holdings in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) by 16.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 36,460 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 7,040 shares during the period. Scotts Miracle-Gro accounts for about 1.3% of Independent Family Office LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Independent Family Office LLC’s holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro were worth $2,324,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 146.1% during the 2nd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 406 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Resources Management Corp CT ADV raised its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 2,025.0% during the 2nd quarter. Resources Management Corp CT ADV now owns 425 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 405 shares during the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 4th quarter worth $47,000. Finally, First Manhattan Co. raised its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 29.9% during the 4th quarter. First Manhattan Co. now owns 987 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,394 shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.35, for a total transaction of $79,945.90. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 22,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,314,347.30. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,394 shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.35, for a total transaction of $79,945.90. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 22,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,314,347.30. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.40, for a total transaction of $876,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,881,368 shares in the company, valued at $810,671,891.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 102,750 shares of company stock valued at $6,604,492 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 26.46% of the company’s stock.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

Scotts Miracle-Gro stock traded down $0.50 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $68.23. The company had a trading volume of 168,769 shares, compared to its average volume of 754,132. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 12-month low of $43.67 and a 12-month high of $77.95. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $66.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $59.30.

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

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.87%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -37.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company Profile

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.