William Blair Brokers Decrease Earnings Estimates for The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Free Report) - Stock analysts at William Blair reduced their FY2024 EPS estimates for shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note issued on Wednesday, May 1st. William Blair analyst J. Andersen now expects that the basic materials company will earn $2.65 per share for the year, down from their previous forecast of $2.75. The consensus estimate for Scotts Miracle-Gro's current full-year earnings is $2.69 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Scotts Miracle-Gro's FY2025 earnings at $3.48 EPS.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on SMG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. StockNews.com raised Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Raymond James reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Truist Financial downgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and upped their target price for the company from $65.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $72.57.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

NYSE:SMG traded up $1.86 on Friday, hitting $70.53. 937,423 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 762,583. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.00 and a beta of 1.70. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 52 week low of $43.67 and a 52 week high of $77.95. The company's 50-day moving average price is $68.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $60.96.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.33 by $0.36. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative net margin of 10.14% and a negative return on equity of 20.97%. The business had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.78 earnings per share. Scotts Miracle-Gro's revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.74%. Scotts Miracle-Gro's dividend payout ratio is -42.31%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,394 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.35, for a total transaction of $79,945.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 22,918 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,314,347.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 15,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.40, for a total transaction of $876,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,881,368 shares in the company, valued at approximately $810,671,891.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,394 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.35, for a total transaction of $79,945.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 22,918 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,314,347.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 102,750 shares of company stock worth $6,604,492 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 26.46% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SMG. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 151.4% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 194,791 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $12,576,000 after acquiring an additional 117,314 shares during the period. Cullen Investment Group LTD. bought a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 4th quarter valued at $823,000. Brandes Investment Partners LP boosted its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 126.7% in the 3rd quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 63,435 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $3,278,000 after purchasing an additional 35,456 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 4th quarter valued at $746,000. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC increased its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 45.7% during the 4th quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 59,760 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $3,810,000 after buying an additional 18,756 shares during the period. 74.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company Profile

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.