The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Short Interest Down 20.7% in January

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,650,000 shares, a drop of 20.7% from the January 15th total of 3,340,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 815,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.2 days. Approximately 6.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on SMG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $77.00 to $72.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of 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. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They set a "hold" rating and a $72.00 price target for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $75.83.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

Scotts Miracle-Gro stock traded down $0.52 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $66.16. 633,662 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 703,980. The business has a fifty day moving average of $69.28 and a 200 day moving average of $74.58. The firm has a market cap of $3.80 billion, a P/E ratio of -137.82 and a beta of 1.74. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 12-month low of $56.01 and a 12-month high of $93.90.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported ($0.89) earnings per share (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) EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Scotts Miracle-Gro will post 3.4 EPS for the current year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.99%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Scotts Miracle-Gro's payout ratio is presently -549.99%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO James Hagedorn sold 18,368 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 87,426 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,616,399.68. This trade represents a 17.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,553,774 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,028,866,984.34. The trade was a 0.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 218,164 shares of company stock worth $15,789,544 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 25.37% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Scotts Miracle-Gro

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 427.0% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 332 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings 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. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. 74.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.