The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Shares Sold by Blair William & Co. IL

Key Points

• Blair William & Co. IL has reduced its stake in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company by 19.7%, now owning approximately 0.33% of the company valued at $10.46 million.
• The company recently reported earnings per share (EPS) of $2.59, exceeding analysts' expectations, though its revenue was down 1.2% year-over-year.
• Scotts Miracle-Gro announced a quarterly dividend of $0.66 per share, representing a yield of 4.3%, set to be paid on September 5th.

Blair William & Co. IL decreased its holdings in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Free Report) by 19.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 190,607 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 46,657 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL owned approximately 0.33% of Scotts Miracle-Gro worth $10,462,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Spire Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 477.9% during the first quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 549 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 454 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake 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 purchasing an additional 465 shares during the period. Avalon Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the first quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $73,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 31.6% in the first 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.07% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on SMG shares. Truist Financial set a $80.00 price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $71.00 to $70.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Finally, UBS Group set a $68.00 price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Two 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 company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $71.17.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 70,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 25.37% of the company's stock.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

Shares of SMG traded down $1.48 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $58.49. 541,738 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 906,362. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 1-year low of $45.61 and a 1-year high of $93.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.38 billion, a PE ratio of 76.96 and a beta of 1.97. The business's 50 day moving average price is $64.91 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $61.38.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.40. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a net margin of 1.54% and a negative return on equity of 60.46%. The company had revenue of $1.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.31 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 3.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.5%. Scotts Miracle-Gro's payout ratio is 347.37%.

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.