Versor Investments LP Purchases Shares of 12,800 The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)

Versor Investments LP acquired a new stake in shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 12,800 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $1,110,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of SMG. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp increased its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 2.4% during the first quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 36,647 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,734,000 after purchasing an additional 866 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 9.4% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 15,041 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,122,000 after purchasing an additional 1,289 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank lifted its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 83,900 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $6,258,000 after buying an additional 900 shares during the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the first quarter valued at approximately $267,000. Finally, US Bancorp DE boosted its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 9.9% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 40,992 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $3,058,000 after buying an additional 3,688 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.07% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on SMG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $70.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of 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. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $78.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 2,988 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total transaction of $211,938.84. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 37,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,689,665.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 2,988 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total value of $211,938.84. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 37,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,689,665.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 85,130 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total value of $6,038,270.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,608,238 shares in the company, valued at $965,232,321.34. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 26.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Trading Down 1.1 %

NYSE:SMG traded down $0.80 on Tuesday, hitting $73.58. The company's stock had a trading volume of 970,300 shares, compared to its average volume of 817,755. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a one year low of $48.84 and a one year high of $93.90. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $80.94 and a two-hundred day moving average of $72.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.18 billion, a P/E ratio of -107.78 and a beta of 1.76.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.59%. Scotts Miracle-Gro's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -382.61%.

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.