Kentucky Retirement Systems Lowers Stock Position in The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM)

Kentucky Retirement Systems reduced its stake in shares of The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,314 shares of the company’s stock after selling 101 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in J. M. Smucker were worth $805,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of J. M. Smucker by 1,329.4% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 243 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Kentucky Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of J. M. Smucker during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Kieckhefer Group LLC purchased a new position in J. M. Smucker in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in J. M. Smucker in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in J. M. Smucker in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. 81.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SJM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on J. M. Smucker from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. TD Cowen cut J. M. Smucker from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $130.00 to $121.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on J. M. Smucker from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on J. M. Smucker from $126.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $126.78.

J. M. Smucker Stock Performance

NYSE:SJM opened at $110.93 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The J. M. Smucker Company has a 1 year low of $98.77 and a 1 year high of $127.59. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $106.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $113.33. The company has a market cap of $11.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.45, a PEG ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.27.

J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 26th. The company reported $2.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.51 by $0.25. J. M. Smucker had a return on equity of 14.35% and a net margin of 5.96%. The business had revenue of $2.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.59 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The J. M. Smucker Company will post 9.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

J. M. Smucker Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $1.08 per share. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. J. M. Smucker’s dividend payout ratio is currently 87.45%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Tucker H. Marshall sold 994 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.00, for a total transaction of $112,322.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 18,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,116,942. The trade was a 5.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 3.40% of the company’s stock.

J. M. Smucker Company Profile

The J. M. Smucker Company manufactures and markets branded food and beverage products worldwide. It operates in three segments: U.S. Retail Pet Foods, U.S. Retail Coffee, and U.S. Retail Consumer Foods. The company offers mainstream roast, ground, single serve, and premium coffee; peanut butter and specialty spreads; fruit spreads, toppings, and syrups; jelly products; nut mix products; shortening and oils; frozen sandwiches and snacks; pet food and pet snacks; and foodservice hot beverage, foodservice portion control, and flour products, as well as dog and cat food, frozen handheld products, juices and beverages, and baking mixes and ingredients.