The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $69.50.

Several research analysts recently issued reports on SMG shares. Zacks Research cut Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $67.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $70.00 target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $62.00 to $61.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 25th.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SMG opened at $59.45 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $56.18 and a 200-day moving average price of $59.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.57 and a beta of 1.95. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 1 year low of $45.61 and a 1 year high of $79.11.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The basic materials company reported ($1.96) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.88) by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $387.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $396.75 million. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a net margin of 4.26% and a negative return on equity of 67.74%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($2.31) EPS. Scotts Miracle-Gro has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.150-4.350 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Scotts Miracle-Gro will post 3.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 21st were given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 21st. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.4%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 109.09%.

Institutional Trading of Scotts Miracle-Gro

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Amundi raised its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 519.9% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 58,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,083,000 after acquiring an additional 48,643 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 219,313.5% during the second quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 162,366 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $10,710,000 after purchasing an additional 162,292 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 215.2% in the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 31,853 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,101,000 after purchasing an additional 21,747 shares in the last quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP increased its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 333.3% in the second quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 603,941 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $39,836,000 after purchasing an additional 464,570 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AGF Management Ltd. raised its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 12.6% in the second quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 50,600 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,338,000 after purchasing an additional 5,649 shares during the period. 74.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Scotts Miracle-Gro

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company is a leading developer, manufacturer and distributor of consumer lawn and garden products. The firm serves both retail and professional customers through an array of branded offerings that include lawn fertilizers, grass seed, pest and disease control solutions, plant foods and specialty products for indoor and outdoor gardening. Its portfolio spans well-known names such as Scotts®, Miracle-Gro®, Ortho® and various hydroponic and specialty garden brands.

Headquartered in Marysville, Ohio, the company traces its roots to O.M.