The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Shares Bought by Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc.

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) by 1,033.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 364,045 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 331,925 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. owned approximately 0.64% of Scotts Miracle-Gro worth $31,563,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Scientech Research LLC acquired a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $866,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 309.5% during the second quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 215,717 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $14,035,000 after purchasing an additional 163,037 shares during the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 2.2% during the second quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 672,556 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $43,756,000 after purchasing an additional 14,533 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 194.2% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 761,063 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $49,515,000 after buying an additional 502,353 shares during the last quarter. Finally, De Lisle Partners LLP acquired a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 3rd quarter valued at $10,162,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.07% of the company’s stock.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Trading Down 1.5 %

SMG stock opened at $75.83 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $4.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -109.90 and a beta of 1.71. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $82.62 and a 200-day moving average of $73.26. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 12-month low of $53.43 and a 12-month high of $93.90.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.48%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s payout ratio is -382.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Scotts Miracle-Gro

In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 500 shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The shares were 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 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 26.46% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on SMG shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. UBS Group cut their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target 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. Five investment 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.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $78.60.

Scotts Miracle-Gro 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.