Wells Fargo & Company Has Lowered Expectations for Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) Stock Price

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) had its target price dropped by investment analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $85.00 to $80.00 in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price target indicates a potential upside of 18.87% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $72.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group dropped their price target on 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. Truist Financial lowered 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target 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. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.67.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Trading Up 0.6 %

Scotts Miracle-Gro stock opened at $67.30 on Tuesday. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 1-year low of $53.43 and a 1-year high of $93.90. The firm has a market cap of $3.87 billion, a P/E ratio of -97.54 and a beta of 1.73. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $73.71 and a 200-day moving average of $73.89.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 11,359 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.37, for a total transaction of $856,127.83. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 51,631 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,891,428.47. This represents a 18.03 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.14, for a total transaction of $38,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,553,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,045,499,556.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 58,227 shares of company stock valued at $4,410,268 in the last ninety days. 25.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Scotts Miracle-Gro

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 194.2% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 761,063 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $49,515,000 after buying an additional 502,353 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 1,033.4% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 364,045 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,563,000 after acquiring an additional 331,925 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 8,330.2% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 281,485 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $24,405,000 after acquiring an additional 278,146 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 228.0% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 252,798 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $21,918,000 after purchasing an additional 175,719 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 5.0% in the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,172,800 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $275,082,000 after purchasing an additional 151,354 shares during the period. 74.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.