32,500 Shares in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company $SMG Acquired by Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. bought a new position in shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 32,500 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,976,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SMG. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Key Capital Management INC acquired a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro during the third quarter worth about $32,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro by 127.9% during the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 889 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 499 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in Scotts Miracle-Gro in the fourth quarter worth $53,000. 74.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Price Performance

Shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock opened at $69.89 on Tuesday. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has a 1 year low of $52.00 and a 1 year high of $75.34. The company has a market capitalization of $4.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.05 and a beta of 1.81. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $63.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $64.04.

Scotts Miracle-Gro (NYSE:SMG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The basic materials company reported $4.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.97 by $0.56. The firm had revenue of $1.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.41 billion. Scotts Miracle-Gro had a negative return on equity of 79.61% and a net margin of 3.27%.Scotts Miracle-Gro’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.98 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company will post 4.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on SMG. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro from $63.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $76.00 to $75.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Scotts Miracle-Gro from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $79.00 price objective on shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $73.00.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Company Profile

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.