The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company $SMG Shares Acquired by Royal Bank of Canada

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada increased its Scotts Miracle-Gro stake by 182.2% in the first quarter, ending with 66,698 shares valued at approximately $4.06 million. Institutional investors collectively own 74.07% of the company.
• Scotts Miracle-Gro reported quarterly earnings of $2.82 per share, exceeding the $2.48 analyst consensus, while revenue rose 1.1% year over year to $1.17 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.66 per share, equivalent to a 4.3% annualized yield. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $75.40, while insiders have sold more than $2.15 million in shares over the past three months.

Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Free Report) by 182.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 66,698 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 43,066 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned approximately 0.11% of Scotts Miracle-Gro worth $4,057,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group grew its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 4,690 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $275,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 3.9% in the first quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 5,193 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $312,000 after buying an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 2.2% in the first quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 9,126 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $555,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 5,077 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $296,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the period. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 2.9% during the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 10,800 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $657,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.07% of the company's stock.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

SMG stock opened at $61.00 on Friday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $65.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $64.30. The company has a market capitalization of $3.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.05 and a beta of 1.82. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 12 month low of $52.00 and a 12 month high of $75.34.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.48 by $0.34. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a net margin of 2.19% and a negative return on equity of 81.90%. The firm had revenue of $1.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.59 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 4.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 21st. Scotts Miracle-Gro's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 229.57%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,171 shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.32, for a total transaction of $80,002.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 30,179 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,061,829.28. This trade represents a 3.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.45, for a total value of $2,023,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 13,137,641 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $886,133,885.45. This trade represents a 0.23% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 32,002 shares of company stock valued at $2,154,734. Company insiders own 24.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on SMG shares. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $79.00 price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $74.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $75.40.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Profile

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company is a leading developer, manufacturer and distributor of consumer lawn and garden products. The firm serves both retail and professional customers through an array of branded offerings that include lawn fertilizers, grass seed, pest and disease control solutions, plant foods and specialty products for indoor and outdoor gardening. Its portfolio spans well-known names such as Scotts®, Miracle-Gro®, Ortho® and various hydroponic and specialty garden brands.

Headquartered in Marysville, Ohio, the company traces its roots to O.M.

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