Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) Issues Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.08 EPS

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The basic materials company reported ($1.96) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.88) by ($0.08), Zacks reports. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a net margin of 1.54% and a negative return on equity of 60.46%. The business had revenue of $387.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $396.75 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned ($2.31) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Scotts Miracle-Gro updated its FY 2025 guidance to 4.150-4.350 EPS.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

SMG traded down $0.70 on Friday, hitting $55.79. The company had a trading volume of 576,698 shares, compared to its average volume of 966,183. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 52-week low of $45.61 and a 52-week high of $83.55. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $57.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $60.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 73.41 and a beta of 1.98.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 5th. Investors of record on Friday, November 21st will be paid a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 21st. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio is presently 109.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SMG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Truist Financial set a $80.00 target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $62.00 to $61.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $67.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $70.00 price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.50.

Insider Activity at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other news, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 56,633 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.02, for a total value of $3,569,011.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 13,217,641 shares in the company, valued at $832,975,735.82. This trade represents a 0.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Mark J. Scheiwer purchased 1,790 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $61.32 per share, for a total transaction of $109,762.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 10,130 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $621,171.60. This represents a 21.46% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 25.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Scotts Miracle-Gro

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 2nd quarter worth about $216,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the second quarter worth about $222,000. Baird Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the second quarter worth about $309,000. Prudential Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 34.6% in the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 4,745 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $342,000 after purchasing an additional 1,219 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia increased its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 10.0% during the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 5,630 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $371,000 after purchasing an additional 510 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.07% of the company’s stock.

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.