LRI Investments LLC Buys New Shares in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)

LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 3,396 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $237,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in SMG. Rise Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 135.2% during the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division purchased a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 1st quarter valued at about $72,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the fourth quarter worth approximately $76,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.07% of the company’s stock.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

SMG traded up $2.29 during trading on Friday, reaching $70.61. 1,076,704 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 807,758. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 1 year low of $43.67 and a 1 year high of $77.95. The company has a market capitalization of $4.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.32 and a beta of 1.76. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $65.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $65.36.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.33 by $0.36. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 20.97% and a negative net margin of 10.14%. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.78 EPS. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In related news, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 31,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.67, for a total transaction of $2,159,770.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 13,746,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $957,684,656.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 26.46% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Truist Financial cut shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $65.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Friday, April 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $83.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Scotts Miracle-Gro presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $71.67.

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.