The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Shares Sold by Leeward Investments LLC MA

Leeward Investments LLC MA lessened its position in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) by 20.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 46,739 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 12,107 shares during the period. Leeward Investments LLC MA owned about 0.08% of Scotts Miracle-Gro worth $4,052,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC lifted its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC now owns 15,737 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,364,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares during the period. Fernwood Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 98.9% during the 3rd quarter. Fernwood Investment Management LLC now owns 10,055 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $872,000 after acquiring an additional 5,000 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 114.4% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 73,458 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,361,000 after acquiring an additional 39,196 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 0.9% in the third quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 78,506 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,807,000 after acquiring an additional 708 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 427.0% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 332 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.07% of the company’s stock.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

Shares of SMG opened at $72.99 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $80.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $72.40. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a one year low of $48.29 and a one year high of $93.90. The company has a market capitalization of $4.15 billion, a P/E ratio of -15.43 and a beta of 1.76.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported ($2.31) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.94) by ($0.37). Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 41.19% and a negative net margin of 7.38%. The company had revenue of $414.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $392.95 million. As a group, equities research analysts forecast 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.62%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s payout ratio is -55.81%.

Insider Activity at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 2,988 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total transaction of $211,938.84. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 37,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,689,665.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 85,130 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total transaction of $6,038,270.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,608,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $965,232,321.34. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 2,988 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total value of $211,938.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 37,920 shares in the company, valued at $2,689,665.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 26.46% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on SMG. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $65.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. UBS Group lowered their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $82.60.

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.