Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Acquires New Shares in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 11,700 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $746,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SMG. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 0.8% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,640,383 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $239,815,000 after buying an additional 35,002 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,711,024 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $140,106,000 after acquiring an additional 108,593 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 13.3% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,011,906 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $52,295,000 after acquiring an additional 119,115 shares in the last quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC boosted its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 18.8% during the 3rd quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 903,974 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $46,717,000 after purchasing an additional 143,326 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 62.9% during the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 595,995 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $30,801,000 after purchasing an additional 230,155 shares in the last quarter. 74.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Up 0.1 %

SMG traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $67.75. The stock had a trading volume of 627,536 shares, compared to its average volume of 570,421. The stock has a market cap of $3.84 billion, a PE ratio of -9.62 and a beta of 1.70. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 1 year low of $43.67 and a 1 year high of $77.95. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $67.96 and its 200 day simple moving average is $60.55.

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

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 24th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.90%. Scotts Miracle-Gro's dividend payout ratio is currently -37.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on SMG shares. Raymond James restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a report on Monday, March 25th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. Truist Financial lowered shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $65.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Friday, April 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Scotts Miracle-Gro presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $70.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other news, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 86,356 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.41, for a total value of $5,648,545.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,777,012 shares in the company, valued at $901,154,354.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 1,394 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at $1,314,347.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 86,356 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.41, for a total value of $5,648,545.96. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 13,777,012 shares in the company, valued at approximately $901,154,354.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 102,750 shares of company stock valued at $6,604,492 in the last quarter. 26.46% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.