Mark J. Scheiwer Sells 1,500 Shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Stock

Key Points

• Mark J. Scheiwer, Executive Vice President of Scotts Miracle-Gro, sold 1,500 shares at an average price of $66.05, decreasing his ownership by 18% and leaving him with 6,834 shares valued at approximately $451,386.
• Scotts Miracle-Gro announced a quarterly dividend of $0.66 per share, representing an annualized payout of $2.64, while maintaining a high payout ratio of 347.37%.
• Analysts have mixed views on the stock, with price targets ranging from $68 to $80, but the average rating is a "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $71.17.

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) EVP Mark J. Scheiwer sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.05, for a total transaction of $99,075.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,834 shares in the company, valued at approximately $451,385.70. This trade represents a 18.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

Scotts Miracle-Gro stock traded down $1.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $58.49. The stock had a trading volume of 541,738 shares, compared to its average volume of 898,834. The company has a market capitalization of $3.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 76.96 and a beta of 1.97. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $64.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $61.30. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a one year low of $45.61 and a one year high of $93.90.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $2.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.40. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 60.46% and a net margin of 1.54%. The business had revenue of $1.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.31 EPS. Scotts Miracle-Gro's revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 3.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 22nd will be given a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.5%. Scotts Miracle-Gro's payout ratio is 347.37%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Scotts Miracle-Gro

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Spire Wealth Management raised its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 32.1% in the 2nd quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 725 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 3.1% during the 1st quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 6,415 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $352,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 8,826 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $484,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System increased its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 10,300 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $565,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,524 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $248,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.07% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on SMG shares. UBS Group set a $68.00 target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $71.00 to $70.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $80.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $71.17.

About Scotts Miracle-Gro

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.