Neo Ivy Capital Management Decreases Stake in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)

Neo Ivy Capital Management trimmed its position in shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Free Report) by 85.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,270 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 48,286 shares during the period. Neo Ivy Capital Management's holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro were worth $718,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. OLD National Bancorp IN increased its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 2.7% in the third quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 5,049 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $438,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the period. Nicollet Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Nicollet Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,845 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,114,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 83.6% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 369 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 4.6% in the second quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 3,944 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $251,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 25.8% in the second quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 854 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.07% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In related news, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 11,359 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.37, for a total value of $856,127.83. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 51,631 shares in the company, valued at $3,891,428.47. The trade was a 18.03 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 28,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.91, for a total transaction of $2,125,480.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,553,774 shares in the company, valued at $1,028,866,984.34. This trade represents a 0.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 58,227 shares of company stock valued at $4,410,268 in the last three months. Company insiders own 26.46% of the company's stock.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

SMG stock traded up $0.78 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $74.34. The stock had a trading volume of 583,230 shares, compared to its average volume of 810,071. The business has a 50-day moving average of $81.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $73.61. The firm has a market cap of $4.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -107.73 and a beta of 1.71. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 52-week low of $53.43 and a 52-week high of $93.90.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd were paid a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.55%. Scotts Miracle-Gro's payout ratio is -382.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SMG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. 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 report on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a report on Monday. They set a "hold" rating and a $72.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $77.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Six investment 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 company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $77.50.

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.