Boston Partners Lowers Position in The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM)

Key Points

• Boston Partners reduced its stake in The J. M. Smucker Company by 18.8%, resulting in an ownership of 958,914 shares valued at approximately $113.54 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• Several institutional investors, including Invesco Ltd. and LSV Asset Management, have increased their stakes in J. M. Smucker, highlighting significant interest in the company among hedge funds.
• The J. M. Smucker Company declared a quarterly dividend increase to $1.10 per share, with a payment scheduled for September 2nd, reflecting a positive change and a 3.9% dividend yield.

Boston Partners trimmed its position in shares of The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM - Free Report) by 18.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 958,914 shares of the company's stock after selling 222,569 shares during the quarter. Boston Partners owned 0.90% of J. M. Smucker worth $113,543,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of SJM. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of J. M. Smucker in the 1st quarter worth about $203,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in J. M. Smucker by 113.5% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,923 shares of the company's stock worth $346,000 after purchasing an additional 1,554 shares in the last quarter. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new stake in shares of J. M. Smucker in the first quarter worth approximately $50,000. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of J. M. Smucker by 124.8% in the fourth quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 13,355 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,471,000 after purchasing an additional 7,414 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of J. M. Smucker by 55.5% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 6,117 shares of the company's stock valued at $674,000 after buying an additional 2,182 shares during the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays lowered their price target on J. M. Smucker from $119.00 to $105.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of J. M. Smucker from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $118.00 to $115.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of J. M. Smucker from $106.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of J. M. Smucker from $128.00 to $118.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on J. M. Smucker in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $130.00 target price on the stock. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $117.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Tarang Amin bought 1,050 shares of J. M. Smucker stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $96.09 per share, with a total value of $100,894.50. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 3,825 shares of the company's stock, valued at $367,544.25. This represents a 37.84% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

J. M. Smucker Stock Performance

Shares of SJM stock traded down $0.88 on Friday, hitting $110.56. 1,692,900 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,594,209. The J. M. Smucker Company has a one year low of $93.30 and a one year high of $125.42. The firm's 50 day moving average is $104.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $109.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.78 billion, a PE ratio of -9.56, a P/E/G ratio of 8.42 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16.

J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, June 10th. The company reported $2.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.25 by $0.06. J. M. Smucker had a negative net margin of 14.10% and a positive return on equity of 15.20%. The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.66 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that The J. M. Smucker Company will post 9.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

J. M. Smucker Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $1.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. This is an increase from J. M. Smucker's previous quarterly dividend of $1.08. J. M. Smucker's dividend payout ratio is -38.06%.

J. M. Smucker Profile

The J. M. Smucker Company manufactures and markets branded food and beverage products worldwide. It operates in three segments: U.S. Retail Pet Foods, U.S. Retail Coffee, and U.S. Retail Consumer Foods. The company offers mainstream roast, ground, single serve, and premium coffee; peanut butter and specialty spreads; fruit spreads, toppings, and syrups; jelly products; nut mix products; shortening and oils; frozen sandwiches and snacks; pet food and pet snacks; and foodservice hot beverage, foodservice portion control, and flour products, as well as dog and cat food, frozen handheld products, juices and beverages, and baking mixes and ingredients.