The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Plans Quarterly Dividend of $0.66

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, April 23rd, Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 24th will be given a dividend of 0.66 per share by the basic materials company on Friday, June 7th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.85%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 23rd.

Scotts Miracle-Gro has increased its dividend by an average of 3.2% annually over the last three years. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a payout ratio of 66.3% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Scotts Miracle-Gro to earn $3.80 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.64 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 69.5%.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SMG traded up $0.69 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $68.58. 448,850 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 739,317. The business's 50-day moving average price is $67.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $60.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.74 and a beta of 1.70. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 12 month low of $43.67 and a 12 month high of $77.95.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The basic materials company reported ($1.45) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.62) by $0.17. The company had revenue of $410.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $412.83 million. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 44.37% and a negative net margin of 11.52%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($1.02) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Scotts Miracle-Gro will post 2.69 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,394 shares of the company's 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 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 available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,394 shares of the company's 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 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 available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.40, for a total value of $876,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,881,368 shares in the company, valued at $810,671,891.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 102,750 shares of company stock valued at $6,604,492. 26.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SMG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. StockNews.com raised Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Raymond James reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $65.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Scotts Miracle-Gro presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $70.00.

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.