Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) Hits New 1-Year Low – Here’s Why

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $54.81 and last traded at $54.88, with a volume of 517192 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $57.25.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on SMG. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $77.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $78.00 to $70.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $72.00 price objective for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $74.00.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Trading Down 4.5 %

The business’s fifty day moving average price is $64.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $72.43. The firm has a market cap of $3.14 billion, a P/E ratio of -113.88 and a beta of 1.79.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported ($0.89) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.23) by $0.34. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 51.48% and a negative net margin of 0.67%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($1.45) EPS. Research analysts predict that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 3.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.83%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s payout ratio is currently -550.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In related news, Director Brian E. Sandoval sold 1,513 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.86, for a total transaction of $99,646.18. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 13,039 shares in the company, valued at $858,748.54. This represents a 10.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Christopher Hagedorn sold 3,568 shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $255,112.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,972 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,001,998. This represents a 5.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 159,937 shares of company stock worth $11,379,275 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 25.37% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Scotts Miracle-Gro

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in the third quarter valued at about $44,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC grew its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 77.3% during the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 516 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the third quarter valued at about $50,000. 74.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.