The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) Shares Sold by Hilltop National Bank

Hilltop National Bank trimmed its stake in shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) by 19.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 750 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 180 shares during the period. Hilltop National Bank’s holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro were worth $50,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SMG. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 427.0% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 332 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 83.6% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 369 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the third quarter valued at approximately $44,000. 74.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Scotts Miracle-Gro news, major shareholder Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.14, for a total transaction of $38,570.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 13,553,274 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,045,499,556.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Nathan Eric Baxter sold 11,359 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.37, for a total value of $856,127.83. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 51,631 shares in the company, valued at $3,891,428.47. This trade represents a 18.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 58,227 shares of company stock valued at $4,410,268. Insiders own 25.37% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SMG has been the topic of several research 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 report on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group lowered their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $72.00 price target for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Scotts Miracle-Gro presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $76.67.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

Shares of SMG opened at $66.26 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $73.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $73.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -96.03 and a beta of 1.73. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a one year low of $53.43 and a one year high of $93.90.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -382.61%.

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.