Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV Sells 2,978 Shares of The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM)

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lessened its holdings in The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM - Free Report) by 33.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,971 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,978 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV's holdings in J. M. Smucker were worth $658,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. grew its position in J. M. Smucker by 17.9% in the fourth quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 660 shares of the company's stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Utah Retirement Systems grew its position in J. M. Smucker by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 17,146 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,888,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont grew its position in J. M. Smucker by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 2,731 shares of the company's stock valued at $301,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in J. M. Smucker by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,845 shares of the company's stock valued at $203,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mendel Money Management grew its position in J. M. Smucker by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Mendel Money Management now owns 3,933 shares of the company's stock valued at $433,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on J. M. Smucker from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on J. M. Smucker in a research note on Monday, March 24th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $123.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com raised J. M. Smucker from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 28th. UBS Group started coverage on J. M. Smucker in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. They set a "buy" rating and a $134.00 price target on the stock. Finally, DA Davidson cut their price target on J. M. Smucker from $122.00 to $120.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $126.50.

J. M. Smucker Price Performance

J. M. Smucker stock opened at $111.48 on Monday. The stock's 50 day moving average is $114.20 and its 200 day moving average is $111.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market cap of $11.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.36. The J. M. Smucker Company has a one year low of $98.77 and a one year high of $125.42.

J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $2.61 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.37 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.23 billion. J. M. Smucker had a return on equity of 14.35% and a net margin of 5.96%. As a group, research analysts expect that The J. M. Smucker Company will post 9.88 EPS for the current year.

J. M. Smucker Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a $1.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.88%. J. M. Smucker's dividend payout ratio is currently -179.25%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Tucker H. Marshall sold 5,028 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.36, for a total transaction of $569,974.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 13,263 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,503,493.68. This represents a 27.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jill R. Penrose sold 5,117 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.26, for a total value of $594,902.42. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 8,794 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,022,390.44. The trade was a 36.78% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.40% of the company's stock.

J. M. Smucker Profile

The J. M. Smucker Company manufactures and markets branded food and beverage products worldwide. It operates in three segments: U.S. Retail Pet Foods, U.S. Retail Coffee, and U.S. Retail Consumer Foods. The company offers mainstream roast, ground, single serve, and premium coffee; peanut butter and specialty spreads; fruit spreads, toppings, and syrups; jelly products; nut mix products; shortening and oils; frozen sandwiches and snacks; pet food and pet snacks; and foodservice hot beverage, foodservice portion control, and flour products, as well as dog and cat food, frozen handheld products, juices and beverages, and baking mixes and ingredients.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.