CCM Investment Group LLC Purchases New Holdings in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)

Key Points

• CCM Investment Group LLC acquired 6,028 shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company, valued at approximately $330,000, marking a significant institutional investment in the company.
• Scotts Miracle-Gro reported earnings of $2.59 per share, surpassing estimates, although its revenue fell by 1.2% year-over-year to $1.19 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.66 per share, reflecting a dividend yield of 4.5%, while its payout ratio stands at 347.37%.

CCM Investment Group LLC bought a new position in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 6,028 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $330,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Spire Wealth Management lifted its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 477.9% in the 1st quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 549 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 454 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 479.4% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 562 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 465 shares during the last quarter. Avalon Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 1st quarter worth $41,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 4th quarter worth $73,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 31.6% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,614 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $89,000 after buying an additional 388 shares during the last quarter. 74.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on SMG. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Truist Financial set a $80.00 target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $71.00 to $70.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $80.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $71.17.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

Scotts Miracle-Gro stock traded down $0.35 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $62.16. The stock had a trading volume of 161,132 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,067,372. The stock has a market cap of $3.59 billion, a PE ratio of 81.78 and a beta of 1.97. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 52 week low of $45.61 and a 52 week high of $93.90. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $65.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $61.11.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $2.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.23 billion. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a net margin of 1.54% and a negative return on equity of 60.46%. The company's revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.31 EPS. Research analysts predict 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. Scotts Miracle-Gro's payout ratio is presently 347.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other news, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 70,000 shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.28, for a total transaction of $4,359,600.00. Following the sale, the director owned 13,274,274 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $826,721,784.72. The trade was a 0.52% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 25.37% 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.