Insider Selling: The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) EVP Sells 1,500 Shares of 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 company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.05, for a total value of $99,075.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,834 shares of the company's stock, valued at $451,385.70. This trade represents a 18.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

Scotts Miracle-Gro stock traded up $1.11 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $60.88. 645,801 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,079,000. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 80.11 and a beta of 1.97. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 12 month low of $45.61 and a 12 month high of $93.90. The business's 50-day moving average is $64.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $61.20.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 firm 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 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 3.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 22nd. Scotts Miracle-Gro's dividend payout ratio is 347.37%.

Institutional Trading of Scotts Miracle-Gro

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SMG. LPL Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 63,592 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $4,219,000 after purchasing an additional 5,275 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,008,000. Bank of Nova Scotia bought a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $298,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,986,000. Finally, Capital Fund Management S.A. boosted its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 233.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital Fund Management S.A. now owns 90,958 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $6,034,000 after acquiring an additional 63,641 shares during the last quarter. 74.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SMG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered 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 research report on Monday, August 4th. UBS Group set a $68.00 target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $80.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average 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.