J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) Cut to Sell at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Sunday morning.

Several other analysts also recently commented on the stock. DA Davidson initiated coverage on shares of J. M. Smucker in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set a neutral rating and a $132.00 price objective on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of J. M. Smucker from $125.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 6th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of J. M. Smucker from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of J. M. Smucker in a report on Tuesday, December 12th. They set an overweight rating and a $140.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of J. M. Smucker from a hold rating to a buy rating and set a $135.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $137.20.

J. M. Smucker Stock Performance

Shares of SJM stock opened at $119.50 on Friday. J. M. Smucker has a one year low of $107.33 and a one year high of $159.92. The company’s 50-day moving average is $125.42 and its 200 day moving average is $121.68. The company has a market capitalization of $12.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -135.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.78.

J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $2.48 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.21. J. M. Smucker had a negative net margin of 1.24% and a positive return on equity of 14.29%. The company had revenue of $2.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.21 EPS. J. M. Smucker’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that J. M. Smucker will post 9.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

J. M. Smucker Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 16th were paid a $1.06 dividend. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.55%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. J. M. Smucker’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -481.81%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other J. M. Smucker news, insider Jeannette L. Knudsen sold 3,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.77, for a total transaction of $399,264.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 8,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,116,192.42. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 3.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On J. M. Smucker

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SJM. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in J. M. Smucker by 85,116.7% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,102,297 shares of the company’s stock valued at $333,130,000 after buying an additional 2,099,830 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in J. M. Smucker during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $219,033,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in J. M. Smucker by 487.5% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,459,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $178,961,000 after buying an additional 1,210,837 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in J. M. Smucker by 363.8% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,274,015 shares of the company’s stock valued at $160,258,000 after buying an additional 999,315 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in J. M. Smucker by 21,858.1% during the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 680,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $86,027,000 after buying an additional 677,600 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.