UBS Group AG Decreases Holdings in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company $SMG

Key Points

• UBS Group AG reduced its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 25.3% in the fourth quarter, selling 91,470 shares and leaving it with 269,882 shares valued at about $15.7 million.
• Scotts Miracle-Gro reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $4.53 versus the $3.97 estimate and revenue of $1.46 billion versus the $1.41 billion forecast.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.66 per share, equal to a 4.5% annualized yield, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus “Moderate Buy” with a $73.50 average price target.

UBS Group AG cut its stake in shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Free Report) by 25.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 269,882 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 91,470 shares during the period. UBS Group AG owned about 0.47% of Scotts Miracle-Gro worth $15,748,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in SMG. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 12,034.5% during the 2nd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,008,623 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $66,529,000 after buying an additional 1,000,311 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 458.7% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 822,743 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $54,268,000 after buying an additional 675,493 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 163.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 899,690 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $59,344,000 after buying an additional 557,647 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 1,260.1% during the 2nd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 489,227 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $32,269,000 after buying an additional 453,256 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,134,000. 74.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

NYSE:SMG opened at $58.86 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.88 and a beta of 1.88. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a one year low of $52.00 and a one year high of $72.35. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $63.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $61.34.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The basic materials company reported $4.53 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.97 by $0.56. The firm had revenue of $1.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.41 billion. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 79.61% and a net margin of 3.27%.Scotts Miracle-Gro's revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.98 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 4.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 22nd will be paid a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 22nd. Scotts Miracle-Gro's dividend payout ratio is presently 147.49%.

Insider Transactions at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, EVP Mark J. Scheiwer purchased 693 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $71.44 per share, for a total transaction of $49,507.92. Following the purchase, the executive vice president owned 15,370 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,098,032.80. This represents a 4.72% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 24.40% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus set a $76.00 target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group set a $67.00 target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $79.00 price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Scotts Miracle-Gro from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $70.00 to $67.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Scotts Miracle-Gro has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $73.50.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company 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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