The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) Declares Quarterly Dividend of $1.10

The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, July 16th, RTT News reports. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of 1.10 per share on Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.15%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This is a 1.9% increase from J. M. Smucker's previous quarterly dividend of $1.08.

J. M. Smucker has a dividend payout ratio of 39.1% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect J. M. Smucker to earn $10.42 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.32 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 41.5%.

J. M. Smucker Price Performance

NYSE SJM traded down $2.84 on Friday, hitting $106.06. The company had a trading volume of 2,281,619 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,335,738. The company has a market capitalization of $11.30 billion, a PE ratio of -9.17, a PEG ratio of 8.11 and a beta of 0.31. The company's fifty day moving average price is $105.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $108.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.35. J. M. Smucker has a 12-month low of $93.30 and a 12-month high of $125.42.

J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, June 10th. The company reported $2.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.25 by $0.06. J. M. Smucker had a negative net margin of 14.10% and a positive return on equity of 15.20%. The business had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.18 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.66 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that J. M. Smucker will post 9.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SJM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of J. M. Smucker from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 28th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of J. M. Smucker from $120.00 to $106.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of J. M. Smucker from an "underperform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $120.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of J. M. Smucker from $118.00 to $105.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of J. M. Smucker from $128.00 to $118.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $117.33.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Tarang Amin bought 1,050 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $96.09 per share, for a total transaction of $100,894.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 3,825 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $367,544.25. This represents a 37.84% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.24% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of J. M. Smucker

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in J. M. Smucker by 10.0% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 19,440 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,286,000 after purchasing an additional 1,763 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in J. M. Smucker by 28.6% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 12,992 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,538,000 after purchasing an additional 2,889 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP boosted its holdings in shares of J. M. Smucker by 40.7% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 8,990 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,065,000 after acquiring an additional 2,600 shares during the period. Finally, United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in shares of J. M. Smucker in the first quarter valued at approximately $253,000. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About J. M. Smucker

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.