The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) saw a significant drop in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,500,000 shares, a drop of 21.2% from the December 15th total of 4,440,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 743,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.7 days. Currently, 8.1% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SMG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective 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. UBS Group cut their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a report on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $72.00 price target for the company. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Scotts Miracle-Gro currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.67.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SMG traded up $1.69 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $70.02. 269,904 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 471,705. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $71.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $73.98. The stock has a market cap of $4.02 billion, a P/E ratio of -101.48 and a beta of 1.73. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 1-year low of $53.43 and a 1-year high of $93.90.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio is currently -382.61%.

Insider Transactions at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, CEO James Hagedorn sold 18,368 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.68, for a total transaction of $1,390,090.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 87,426 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,616,399.68. This trade represents a 17.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 11,359 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 51,631 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,891,428.47. This represents a 18.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 58,227 shares of company stock worth $4,410,268 over the last ninety days. 25.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Scotts Miracle-Gro

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SMG. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 194.2% during 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. grew its stake in shares of 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 holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 8,330.2% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 281,485 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $24,405,000 after purchasing an additional 278,146 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in shares of 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 holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 5.0% during 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 last quarter. 74.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.