The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) Shares Sold by Bahl & Gaynor Inc.

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. decreased its position in shares of The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 11,583 shares of the company’s stock after selling 301 shares during the quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in J. M. Smucker were worth $1,464,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of SJM. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC acquired a new position in J. M. Smucker in the third quarter valued at about $464,000. Citigroup Inc. lifted its position in J. M. Smucker by 15.1% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 277,459 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,103,000 after buying an additional 36,296 shares during the last quarter. Ardevora Asset Management LLP acquired a new position in J. M. Smucker in the fourth quarter valued at about $11,147,000. Vest Financial LLC lifted its position in J. M. Smucker by 58.3% in the fourth quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 238,048 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,085,000 after buying an additional 87,682 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Comerica Bank acquired a new position in J. M. Smucker in the third quarter valued at about $5,522,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

J. M. Smucker Price Performance

Shares of J. M. Smucker stock opened at $113.60 on Friday. The J. M. Smucker Company has a 52 week low of $107.33 and a 52 week high of $159.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $120.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $120.62.

J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $2.48 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $2.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.22 billion. J. M. Smucker had a negative net margin of 1.24% and a positive return on equity of 14.29%. The firm’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.21 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that The J. M. Smucker Company will post 9.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

J. M. Smucker Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $1.06 dividend. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. J. M. Smucker’s payout ratio is currently -481.81%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Jeannette L. Knudsen sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.77, for a total value of $399,264.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 8,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,116,192.42. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 3.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on SJM shares. DA Davidson started coverage on shares of J. M. Smucker in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $132.00 price target on the stock. Barclays increased their price target on shares of J. M. Smucker from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of J. M. Smucker from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $135.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of J. M. Smucker from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on shares of J. M. Smucker from $153.00 to $152.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $137.47.

J. M. Smucker Profile

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.