J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $111.85, but opened at $105.00. J. M. Smucker shares last traded at $96.43, with a volume of 2,238,811 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of J. M. Smucker from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 28th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of J. M. Smucker in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on J. M. Smucker from $129.00 to $128.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 19th. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on J. M. Smucker from $122.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of J. M. Smucker from $134.00 to $129.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $125.30.

J. M. Smucker Price Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $113.75 and its 200 day moving average is $111.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The company has a market cap of $10.31 billion, a PE ratio of 19.62, a PEG ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.35.

J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, June 10th. The company reported $2.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.25 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.18 billion. J. M. Smucker had a return on equity of 14.35% and a net margin of 5.96%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.66 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The J. M. Smucker Company will post 9.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

J. M. Smucker Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th were given a dividend of $1.08 per share. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.46%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. J. M. Smucker’s dividend payout ratio is presently -179.25%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jill R. Penrose sold 5,117 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.26, for a total transaction of $594,902.42. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 8,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,022,390.44. This trade represents a 36.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Tucker H. Marshall sold 5,028 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.36, for a total value of $569,974.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,263 shares of the company’s stock, 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.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On J. M. Smucker

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in J. M. Smucker by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,344,933 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,469,544,000 after buying an additional 130,533 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of J. M. Smucker by 11.3% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,734,305 shares of the company’s stock valued at $411,222,000 after buying an additional 380,309 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of J. M. Smucker by 8.6% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,623,254 shares of the company’s stock valued at $310,620,000 after buying an additional 208,231 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in J. M. Smucker by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,609,952 shares of the company’s stock valued at $286,664,000 after acquiring an additional 58,231 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in J. M. Smucker by 12.3% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,257,127 shares of the company’s stock worth $267,252,000 after acquiring an additional 248,110 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.