J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) Downgraded to “Hold” at Stifel Nicolaus

Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Friday, Marketbeat.com reports. Stifel Nicolaus currently has $125.00 price target on the stock, down from their prior price target of $135.00.

Several other analysts have also commented on SJM. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of J. M. Smucker from $135.00 to $132.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of J. M. Smucker from $123.00 to $121.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of J. M. Smucker from $138.00 to $136.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of J. M. Smucker to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of J. M. Smucker from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $126.42.

J. M. Smucker Stock Performance

Shares of SJM stock opened at $116.07 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $12.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.30, a P/E/G ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.55. J. M. Smucker has a 52 week low of $105.69 and a 52 week high of $134.62. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $118.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $115.59.

J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The company reported $2.44 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.17 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.13 billion. J. M. Smucker had a net margin of 8.77% and a return on equity of 14.22%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.21 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that J. M. Smucker will post 9.82 earnings per share for the current year.

J. M. Smucker Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.72%. J. M. Smucker’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.67%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On J. M. Smucker

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Boston Partners bought a new stake in J. M. Smucker during the first quarter valued at approximately $364,990,000. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in J. M. Smucker by 186.3% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 805,029 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,195,000 after purchasing an additional 523,803 shares during the last quarter. Ariel Investments LLC lifted its position in J. M. Smucker by 56.0% during the second quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 1,354,999 shares of the company’s stock valued at $147,749,000 after purchasing an additional 486,624 shares during the last quarter. Ilex Capital Partners UK LLP bought a new stake in J. M. Smucker during the first quarter valued at approximately $48,207,000. Finally, Champlain Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in J. M. Smucker by 29.0% during the first quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,457,995 shares of the company’s stock valued at $183,518,000 after purchasing an additional 327,680 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

About J. M. Smucker

The J. M. Smucker Company manufactures and markets branded food and beverage products worldwide. It operates in three segments: U.S. Retail Pet Foods, U.S. Retail Coffee, and U.S. Retail Consumer Foods. The company offers mainstream roast, ground, single serve, and premium coffee; peanut butter and specialty spreads; fruit spreads, toppings, and syrups; jelly products; nut mix products; shortening and oils; frozen sandwiches and snacks; pet food and pet snacks; and foodservice hot beverage, foodservice portion control, and flour products, as well as dog and cat food, frozen handheld products, juices and beverages, and baking mixes and ingredients.