Invenomic Capital Management LP Invests $924,000 in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company $SMG

Key Points

• Invenomic Capital Management LP invested approximately $924,000 in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company, acquiring 16,830 shares during the first quarter.
• The company reported an EPS of $2.59 for the last quarter, surpassing the consensus estimate of $2.19, despite a decline in revenue by 1.2% year-over-year.
• Scotts Miracle-Gro recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.66 per share, representing a yield of 4.2%, with a payout ratio currently at 347.37%.

Invenomic Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 16,830 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $924,000.

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

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

Shares of SMG traded down $0.62 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $62.42. 635,028 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 719,364. The stock has a market cap of $3.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 82.13 and a beta of 1.98. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $64.51 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $60.33. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $2.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.40. The company had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a net margin of 1.54% and a negative return on equity of 60.46%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.31 earnings per share. Scotts Miracle-Gro has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.500- EPS. On average, analysts forecast that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 3.42 EPS for the current year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 22nd were given a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 22nd. Scotts Miracle-Gro's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 347.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on SMG shares. UBS Group set a $68.00 price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $71.00 to $70.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 4th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $71.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, EVP Mark J. Scheiwer purchased 1,790 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $61.32 per share, for a total transaction of $109,762.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 10,130 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $621,171.60. The trade was a 21.46% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 70,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.28, for a total transaction of $4,359,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 13,274,274 shares in the company, valued at $826,721,784.72. The trade was a 0.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.