The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Plans $0.66 Quarterly Dividend

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Monday, January 27th,RTT News reports. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a dividend of 0.66 per share by the basic materials company on Friday, March 7th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.40%.

Scotts Miracle-Gro has increased its dividend payment by an average of 1.0% annually over the last three years. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a dividend payout ratio of 63.8% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Scotts Miracle-Gro to earn $4.03 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.64 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 65.5%.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Up 5.4 %

Scotts Miracle-Gro stock traded up $4.01 during trading on Monday, reaching $77.74. The stock had a trading volume of 1,264,011 shares, compared to its average volume of 556,901. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 52-week low of $53.43 and a 52-week high of $93.90. The stock has a market cap of $4.47 billion, a PE ratio of -112.67 and a beta of 1.73. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $71.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $74.47.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, CEO James Hagedorn sold 18,368 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.68, for a total value of $1,390,090.24. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 87,426 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,616,399.68. This represents a 17.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 11,359 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The stock was 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. This trade represents a 18.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 58,227 shares of company stock worth $4,410,268. 25.37% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $70.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Scotts Miracle-Gro in a report on Monday, December 9th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $72.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $77.00 to $72.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $75.83.

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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