Insider Selling: The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) CEO Sells 142,733 Shares of Stock

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) CEO James Hagedorn sold 142,733 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.56, for a total value of $10,213,973.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 88,310 shares in the company, valued at $6,319,463.60. The trade was a 61.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

James Hagedorn also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, December 4th, James Hagedorn sold 18,368 shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.68, for a total transaction of $1,390,090.24.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

Shares of SMG stock traded down $1.43 during trading on Thursday, hitting $68.10. 735,888 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 686,195. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -141.86 and a beta of 1.74. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a twelve month low of $54.74 and a twelve month high of $93.90. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $70.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $74.78.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported ($0.89) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.23) by $0.34. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 51.48% and a negative net margin of 0.67%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($1.45) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 3.38 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, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.88%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Scotts Miracle-Gro's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -549.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on SMG. UBS Group decreased their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $77.00 to $72.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $70.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $72.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $75.83.

Institutional Trading of Scotts Miracle-Gro

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SMG. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the third quarter worth $26,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 427.0% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 332 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 269 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 83.6% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 369 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the second quarter worth about $29,000. 74.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company 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.