Nathan Eric Baxter Sells 2,988 Shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Stock

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 2,988 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 $211,938.84. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 37,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,689,665.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Up 3.5 %

Shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock opened at $71.78 on Friday. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 12-month low of $43.67 and a 12-month high of $82.11. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $67.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $67.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.08 billion, a P/E ratio of -11.50 and a beta of 1.76.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $2.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.42. The business had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.20 billion. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative net margin of 7.38% and a negative return on equity of 41.19%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.17 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 23rd will be paid a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 23rd. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.68%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s payout ratio is presently -42.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on SMG shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Scotts Miracle-Gro presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Scotts Miracle-Gro

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Rise Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 135.2% in the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 80.1% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 389 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. bought a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the second quarter worth $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.07% of the company’s stock.

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.