Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Sells 5,284 Shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp trimmed its stake in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Free Report) by 16.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 26,136 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 5,284 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp's holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro were worth $1,734,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 53.6% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 12,880 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,117,000 after purchasing an additional 4,496 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 4.4% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 10,055 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $872,000 after buying an additional 425 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 429.6% during the third quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 2,828 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $245,000 after buying an additional 2,294 shares during the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP increased its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 201.0% during the third quarter. Centiva Capital LP now owns 14,793 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,283,000 after buying an additional 9,879 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 1,033.4% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 364,045 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $31,563,000 after acquiring an additional 331,925 shares during the last quarter. 74.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

NYSE:SMG traded down $1.81 on Friday, hitting $51.35. 1,494,366 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 857,624. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 52 week low of $49.42 and a 52 week high of $93.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -106.98 and a beta of 1.79. The company's 50-day moving average price is $62.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $72.05.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported ($0.89) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.23) by $0.34. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative net margin of 0.67% and a negative return on equity of 51.48%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($1.45) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 3.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.14%. Scotts Miracle-Gro's dividend payout ratio is currently -550.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on SMG shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $78.00 to $70.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Truist Financial upgraded Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $70.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $77.00 to $72.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $80.00 to $70.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They set a "hold" rating and a $72.00 target price on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Scotts Miracle-Gro has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $72.33.

Insider Transactions at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, EVP Christopher Hagedorn sold 3,568 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $255,112.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,972 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,001,998. This trade represents a 5.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Brian E. Sandoval sold 1,513 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.86, for a total transaction of $99,646.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,039 shares of the company's stock, valued at $858,748.54. This trade represents a 10.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 159,937 shares of company stock worth $11,379,275 in the last three months. Insiders own 25.37% of the company's stock.

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.