The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Receives $65.83 Average Target Price from Analysts

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the six research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $65.83.

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on SMG shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $65.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $72.00 to $69.00 in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $78.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective 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. Finally, Truist Financial upgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $70.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SMG traded down $1.95 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $60.91. 691,420 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 963,646. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 12 month low of $45.61 and a 12 month high of $93.90. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $55.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $64.69. The firm has a market cap of $3.52 billion, a PE ratio of -126.90 and a beta of 1.98.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.95 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative net margin of 0.67% and a negative return on equity of 51.48%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.69 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Scotts Miracle-Gro will post 3.42 EPS 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. Scotts Miracle-Gro's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 528.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Scotts Miracle-Gro

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 288.8% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,421,220 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $78,011,000 after purchasing an additional 1,055,672 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 4th quarter valued at about $53,453,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,986,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. bought a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,434,000. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC grew its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 770.3% during the first quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 334,934 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $18,385,000 after purchasing an additional 296,448 shares during the period. 74.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.