Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Acquires Shares of 20,608 The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 20,608 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $1,367,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 19.6% during the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 3,134 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $208,000 after acquiring an additional 514 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 4th quarter worth $9,684,000. Caprock Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 3,046 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $202,000 after buying an additional 423 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 112.8% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,226 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 650 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.07% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $72.00 to $69.00 in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Stifel Nicolaus raised Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $78.00 to $70.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $55.00 to $54.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $80.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Scotts Miracle-Gro presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $65.50.

Insider Activity at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, Director Brian E. Sandoval sold 1,513 shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.86, for a total transaction of $99,646.18. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,039 shares of the company's stock, valued at $858,748.54. The trade was a 10.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 12,123 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.86, for a total transaction of $810,543.78. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 13,432,151 shares of the company's stock, valued at $898,073,615.86. The trade was a 0.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 25.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of NYSE:SMG traded down $1.36 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $53.53. The company's stock had a trading volume of 100,678 shares, compared to its average volume of 945,292. The firm has a market cap of $3.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -111.70 and a beta of 1.98. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $55.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $66.71. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 1 year low of $45.61 and a 1 year high of $93.90.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.95 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.50 billion. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 51.48% and a negative net margin of 0.67%. The firm's revenue was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.69 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 3.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.93%. Scotts Miracle-Gro's dividend payout ratio is presently 528.00%.

Scotts Miracle-Gro 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.