Analysts Set The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Price Target at $69.50

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $69.50.

A number of brokerages recently commented on SMG. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 25th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $71.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. UBS Group cut their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $62.00 to $61.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $70.00 price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

SMG stock opened at $59.45 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $56.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $59.85. The company has a market capitalization of $3.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.57 and a beta of 1.95. Scotts Miracle-Gro has a 1-year low of $45.61 and a 1-year high of $79.11.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The basic materials company reported ($1.96) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.88) by ($0.08). Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 67.74% and a net margin of 4.26%.The business had revenue of $387.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $396.75 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned ($2.31) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Scotts Miracle-Gro has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.150-4.350 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Scotts Miracle-Gro will post 3.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 21st were paid a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 21st. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 109.09%.

Institutional Trading of Scotts Miracle-Gro

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Spire Wealth Management grew its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 32.1% during the 2nd quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 725 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 1.6% in the third quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 12,400 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $706,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 1.9% in the third quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 10,600 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $604,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 1.8% during the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 13,662 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $778,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC increased its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 2.5% during the third quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC now owns 9,911 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $564,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.07% of the company’s stock.

About Scotts Miracle-Gro

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company is a leading developer, manufacturer and distributor of consumer lawn and garden products. The firm serves both retail and professional customers through an array of branded offerings that include lawn fertilizers, grass seed, pest and disease control solutions, plant foods and specialty products for indoor and outdoor gardening. Its portfolio spans well-known names such as Scotts®, Miracle-Gro®, Ortho® and various hydroponic and specialty garden brands.

Headquartered in Marysville, Ohio, the company traces its roots to O.M.