Raymond James Financial Inc. Makes New $32.99 Million Investment in The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 299,563 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,988,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.28% of J. M. Smucker at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. increased its stake in J. M. Smucker by 17.9% during the 4th quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 660 shares of the company's stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 108 shares during the period. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of J. M. Smucker by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,845 shares of the company's stock worth $203,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Mendel Money Management raised its holdings in shares of J. M. Smucker by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Mendel Money Management now owns 3,933 shares of the company's stock worth $433,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the period. Finally, Code Waechter LLC lifted its position in J. M. Smucker by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Code Waechter LLC now owns 5,023 shares of the company's stock valued at $553,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SJM has been the subject of a number of research reports. DA Davidson lowered their target price on J. M. Smucker from $122.00 to $120.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. TD Cowen downgraded J. M. Smucker from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $130.00 to $121.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on J. M. Smucker in a research note on Monday, March 24th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $123.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com raised J. M. Smucker from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of J. M. Smucker from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, J. M. Smucker currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $125.67.

Insider Activity at J. M. Smucker

In other J. M. Smucker news, CFO Tucker H. Marshall sold 5,028 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.36, for a total transaction of $569,974.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,263 shares in the company, valued at $1,503,493.68. This trade represents a 27.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Jill R. Penrose sold 5,117 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,022,390.44. This trade represents a 36.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

J. M. Smucker Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:SJM traded up $1.86 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $117.76. The stock had a trading volume of 1,218,743 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,180,171. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $112.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $111.77. The J. M. Smucker Company has a 12 month low of $98.77 and a 12 month high of $125.42. The company has a market cap of $12.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.84, a PEG ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.35.

J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $2.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.37 by $0.24. J. M. Smucker had a net margin of 5.96% and a return on equity of 14.35%. The company had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.23 billion. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that The J. M. Smucker Company will post 9.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

J. M. Smucker Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $1.08 per share. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.67%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. J. M. Smucker's payout ratio is presently -179.25%.

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.