ProVise Management Group LLC Cuts Stake in The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM)

ProVise Management Group LLC lessened its stake in The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) by 67.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,886 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,010 shares during the quarter. ProVise Management Group LLC’s holdings in J. M. Smucker were worth $365,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of SJM. SageView Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in J. M. Smucker during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $279,000. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of J. M. Smucker by 386.7% during the 4th quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC now owns 511 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 406 shares in the last quarter. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC boosted its position in shares of J. M. Smucker by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC now owns 27,721 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,503,000 after acquiring an additional 2,052 shares during the last quarter. Affinity Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of J. M. Smucker in the fourth quarter valued at $224,000. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its position in J. M. Smucker by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 60,517 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,648,000 after purchasing an additional 2,741 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on SJM. DA Davidson began coverage on shares of J. M. Smucker in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $132.00 price objective for the company. Barclays upped their price objective on J. M. Smucker from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Stifel Nicolaus raised J. M. Smucker from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $135.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on J. M. Smucker from $126.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded J. M. Smucker from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, J. M. Smucker presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $137.47.

Insider Activity at J. M. Smucker

In other J. M. Smucker news, insider Jeannette L. Knudsen sold 3,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.77, for a total transaction of $399,264.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 8,946 shares in the company, valued at $1,116,192.42. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 3.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

J. M. Smucker Price Performance

SJM traded down $0.63 during trading on Friday, hitting $109.77. 838,496 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,154,390. 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 has a 50 day simple moving average of $116.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $120.71. The J. M. Smucker Company has a 1 year low of $107.33 and a 1 year high of $156.03.

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. J. M. Smucker had a positive return on equity of 14.29% and a negative net margin of 1.24%. The firm had revenue of $2.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.21 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that The J. M. Smucker Company will post 9.59 earnings per share for the current year.

J. M. Smucker Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be paid a dividend of $1.06 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $4.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.86%. J. M. Smucker’s dividend payout ratio is presently -481.81%.

J. M. Smucker Company 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.