Caption Management LLC Boosts Holdings in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)

Caption Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Free Report) by 356.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,505 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 8,205 shares during the period. Caption Management LLC's holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro were worth $697,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. PFG Investments LLC boosted its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 3,226 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $214,000 after buying an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 42,303 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,807,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Investment House LLC boosted its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Investment House LLC now owns 61,190 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $4,059,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank boosted its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 3,664 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $243,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tortoise Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 77.3% in the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 516 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.07% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on SMG. UBS Group cut their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $55.00 to $54.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $80.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Truist Financial raised Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $70.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $72.00 to $69.00 in a report on Monday, April 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $65.50.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SMG traded up $2.32 during trading on Monday, hitting $56.31. The stock had a trading volume of 522,655 shares, compared to its average volume of 948,025. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 12 month low of $45.61 and a 12 month high of $93.90. The company has a market capitalization of $3.25 billion, a PE ratio of -117.48 and a beta of 1.98. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $55.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $65.86.

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 earnings per share 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 analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative net margin of 0.67% and a negative return on equity of 51.48%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.69 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 3.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.69%. Scotts Miracle-Gro's dividend payout ratio is presently 528.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Brian E. Sandoval sold 1,513 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.86, for a total value of $99,646.18. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 13,039 shares of the company's stock, valued at $858,748.54. This trade represents a 10.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 25.37% of the company's stock.

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.