Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) Shares Gap Up - Here's What Happened

Shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $58.62, but opened at $61.10. Scotts Miracle-Gro shares last traded at $64.30, with a volume of 595,421 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on SMG. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $72.00 to $69.00 in a research note on Monday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $80.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $55.00 to $54.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $78.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $67.50.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Trading Up 2.4%

The business's 50-day moving average is $55.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $63.29. The firm has a market cap of $3.84 billion, a P/E ratio of -138.75 and a beta of 1.99.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.95 by $0.03. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative net margin of 0.67% and a negative return on equity of 51.48%. The company had revenue of $1.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.69 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 3.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.96%. Scotts Miracle-Gro's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 528.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Scotts Miracle-Gro

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. US Bancorp DE lifted its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 42,303 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,807,000 after buying an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. lifted its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 6,415 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $352,000 after buying an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Investment House LLC lifted its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Investment House LLC now owns 61,190 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $4,059,000 after buying an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank lifted its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 3,664 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $243,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 8,826 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $484,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.07% of the company's stock.

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.