Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) Trading Down 4.2% – Should You Sell?

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)’s share price dropped 4.2% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $85.86 and last traded at $86.04. Approximately 156,150 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average daily volume of 800,828 shares. The stock had previously closed at $89.84.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on SMG. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $65.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Scotts Miracle-Gro currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.75.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $4.92 billion, a PE ratio of -13.88 and a beta of 1.76. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $77.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $71.19.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $2.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.42. The business had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.20 billion. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 41.19% and a negative net margin of 7.38%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.17 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 2.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Investors of record on Friday, August 23rd were issued a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 23rd. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio is currently -42.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 960 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.95, for a total value of $74,832.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 22,940 shares in the company, valued at $1,788,173. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, Director Stephen L. Johnson sold 960 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.95, for a total transaction of $74,832.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 22,940 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,788,173. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 85,130 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total value of $6,038,270.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,608,238 shares in the company, valued at $965,232,321.34. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 89,078 shares of company stock worth $6,325,042. Insiders own 26.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Scotts Miracle-Gro

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 77,564 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,945,000 after acquiring an additional 1,807 shares during the period. Foguth Wealth Management LLC. bought a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the first quarter valued at about $641,000. State of Michigan Retirement System increased its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 3.0% in the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 10,300 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $768,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Leeward Investments LLC MA raised its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 4.0% in the first quarter. Leeward Investments LLC MA now owns 61,497 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,587,000 after buying an additional 2,355 shares during the period. Finally, Maryland State Retirement & Pension System purchased a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 1st quarter valued at about $231,000. 74.07% of the stock is currently 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.