The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Short Interest Update

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,160,000 shares, an increase of 18.9% from the May 15th total of 4,340,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 794,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 6.5 days. Approximately 12.2% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on SMG. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Truist Financial lowered shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and increased their target price for the company from $65.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Friday, April 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Raymond James reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $73.00.

Insider Activity at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In related news, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 31,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.67, for a total transaction of $2,159,770.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 13,746,012 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $957,684,656.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 26.46% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Rise Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 135.2% during the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 4th quarter worth $47,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 23.7% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,376 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.07% of the company's stock.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

Scotts Miracle-Gro stock traded down $1.92 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $64.46. The company had a trading volume of 1,165,423 shares, compared to its average volume of 787,731. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.66 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.32 and a beta of 1.77. The firm's fifty day moving average is $68.27 and its 200-day moving average is $64.62. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a fifty-two week low of $43.67 and a fifty-two week high of $77.95.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.36. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative net margin of 10.14% and a negative return on equity of 20.97%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.78 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Scotts Miracle-Gro will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 24th were paid a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.10%. Scotts Miracle-Gro's dividend payout ratio is presently -42.31%.

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.

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