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 drop in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,050,000 shares, a drop of 23.4% from the March 15th total of 3,980,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,040,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.9 days. Currently, 7.0% of the company's stock are sold short.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Christopher Hagedorn sold 3,568 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 55,972 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,001,998. This represents a 5.99 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO James Hagedorn sold 142,733 shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.56, for a total value of $10,213,973.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 88,310 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,319,463.60. The trade was a 61.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 159,937 shares of company stock worth $11,379,275. 25.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Scotts Miracle-Gro

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SMG. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 708,558 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $61,448,000 after acquiring an additional 14,730 shares during the period. Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 5,300.0% during the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 702 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 689 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the third quarter worth $44,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 13.9% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 58,918 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $5,171,000 after purchasing an additional 7,206 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 112.8% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,226 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 650 shares in the last quarter. 74.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

SMG remained flat at $53.57 on Thursday. The company had a trading volume of 1,953,362 shares, compared to its average volume of 905,398. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $56.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $68.72. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 1 year low of $46.45 and a 1 year high of $93.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.08 billion, a P/E ratio of -111.60 and a beta of 1.96.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported ($0.89) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 earned ($1.45) earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Scotts Miracle-Gro will post 3.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.93%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. Scotts Miracle-Gro's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -550.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SMG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Truist Financial upgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $72.00 to $69.00 in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and decreased their target price for the company from $78.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $77.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $68.17.

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.