Captrust Financial Advisors Boosts Stake in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company $SMG

Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) by 14.5% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,154,815 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 146,192 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors’ holdings in Scotts Miracle-Gro were worth $65,767,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in SMG. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 201.1% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 527 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 157.3% in the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 584 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Scotts Miracle-Gro by 156.7% in the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 634 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 387 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the third quarter worth about $55,000. 74.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Stock Up 3.6%

SMG opened at $64.47 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $3.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.86 and a beta of 1.96. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $65.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $60.00. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 52-week low of $45.61 and a 52-week high of $72.35.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The basic materials company reported ($0.77) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.04) by $0.27. The company had revenue of $354.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $353.25 million. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a net margin of 2.68% and a negative return on equity of 68.59%. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.89) EPS. Scotts Miracle-Gro has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.150-4.35 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 3.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 20th were paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 20th. Scotts Miracle-Gro’s payout ratio is presently 179.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on SMG. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. UBS Group set a $67.00 target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Scotts Miracle-Gro currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.40, for a total transaction of $3,320,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 13,167,641 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $874,331,362.40. The trade was a 0.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Mark J. Scheiwer bought 693 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $71.44 per share, for a total transaction of $49,507.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 15,370 shares in the company, valued at $1,098,032.80. This trade represents a 4.72% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 24.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.