Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) Price Target Raised to $76.00

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) had its target price raised by Stifel Nicolaus from $75.00 to $76.00 in a report issued on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

A number of other analysts also recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $74.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen cut Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $79.00 target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. UBS Group upped their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $75.40.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

NYSE:SMG opened at $65.67 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $65.26 and its 200-day moving average is $64.36. The company has a market cap of $3.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.10 and a beta of 1.82. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 52-week low of $52.00 and a 52-week high of $75.34.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.34. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a net margin of 2.19% and a negative return on equity of 81.90%. The business had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.59 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Scotts Miracle-Gro will post 4.39 EPS for the current year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 21st. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 229.57%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.45, for a total transaction of $2,023,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 13,137,641 shares in the company, valued at $886,133,885.45. This trade represents a 0.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,171 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.32, for a total value of $80,002.72. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 30,179 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,061,829.28. This represents a 3.74% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 24.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SMG. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group boosted its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 4,690 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $275,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 3.9% during the first quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 5,193 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $312,000 after buying an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 2.2% during the first quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 9,126 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $555,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 7.3% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,200 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $218,000 after buying an additional 218 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 5,077 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $296,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the period. 74.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company Profile

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.