XTX Topco Ltd Invests $1.30 Million in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)

XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new position in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 19,984 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,300,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 72.6% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 42,928 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,202,000 after purchasing an additional 18,060 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 18.4% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 230,616 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $17,218,000 after purchasing an additional 35,825 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board grew its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 155.1% in the 1st quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 37,172 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,773,000 after buying an additional 22,599 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama increased its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 309.5% during the 2nd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 215,717 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $14,035,000 after buying an additional 163,037 shares during the period. Finally, Carmignac Gestion bought a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 4th quarter worth about $3,411,000. Institutional investors own 74.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 2,988 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total transaction of $211,938.84. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 37,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,689,665.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 85,130 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were 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 owns 13,608,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $965,232,321.34. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 2,988 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total transaction of $211,938.84. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 37,920 shares in the company, valued at $2,689,665.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 89,078 shares of company stock worth $6,325,042 in the last quarter. 26.46% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

Shares of SMG opened at $73.95 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $69.95 and its 200-day moving average is $68.62. 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 market capitalization of $4.20 billion, a P/E ratio of -11.78 and a beta of 1.75.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative net margin of 7.38% and a negative return on equity of 41.19%. The firm had revenue of $1.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.20 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.17 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 2.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.57%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 23rd. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio is -42.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on SMG shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective 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. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $80.00.

Scotts Miracle-Gro 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.