Marshall Wace LLP Sells 68,737 Shares of The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM)

Marshall Wace LLP cut its holdings in The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) by 49.6% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 69,976 shares of the company’s stock after selling 68,737 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP’s holdings in J. M. Smucker were worth $7,630,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Studio Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of J. M. Smucker in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Cooksen Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in J. M. Smucker in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in J. M. Smucker in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Central Valley Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of J. M. Smucker during the second quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of J. M. Smucker by 2,347.1% in the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 416 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 399 shares during the period. 81.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

J. M. Smucker Stock Performance

J. M. Smucker stock opened at $121.11 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.01, a P/E/G ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.24. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $119.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $116.06. The J. M. Smucker Company has a 52-week low of $105.69 and a 52-week high of $134.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.25.

J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The company reported $2.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.17 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.13 billion. J. M. Smucker had a net margin of 8.77% and a return on equity of 14.22%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.21 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that The J. M. Smucker Company will post 9.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

J. M. Smucker Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were given a dividend of $1.08 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. This is a positive change from J. M. Smucker’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.06. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.57%. J. M. Smucker’s dividend payout ratio is 60.67%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on SJM shares. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $121.00 target price on shares of J. M. Smucker in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Argus cut their price objective on shares of J. M. Smucker from $150.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on J. M. Smucker from $135.00 to $132.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. BNP Paribas raised J. M. Smucker to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on J. M. Smucker from $123.00 to $121.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, J. M. Smucker has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $127.25.

J. M. Smucker Company Profile

The J. M. Smucker Company manufactures and markets branded food and beverage products worldwide. It operates in three segments: U.S. Retail Pet Foods, U.S. Retail Coffee, and U.S. Retail Consumer Foods. The company offers mainstream roast, ground, single serve, and premium coffee; peanut butter and specialty spreads; fruit spreads, toppings, and syrups; jelly products; nut mix products; shortening and oils; frozen sandwiches and snacks; pet food and pet snacks; and foodservice hot beverage, foodservice portion control, and flour products, as well as dog and cat food, frozen handheld products, juices and beverages, and baking mixes and ingredients.