Caprock Group LLC Makes New $227,000 Investment in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG)

Caprock Group LLC purchased a new position in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 2,623 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $227,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in SMG. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 80.1% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 389 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position 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 buying an additional 269 shares during the last quarter. 74.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on SMG. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. 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 report on Thursday, November 7th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $90.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Five equities 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, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $78.60.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SMG opened at $77.86 on Monday. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 1 year low of $53.43 and a 1 year high of $93.90. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $82.15 and its 200 day moving average price is $72.92. The company has a market capitalization of $4.42 billion, a PE ratio of -112.84 and a beta of 1.76.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -382.61%.

About Scotts Miracle-Gro

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.