J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) Shares Up 5.4% – Should You Buy?

The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM)’s stock price rose 5.4% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $117.15 and last traded at $117.50. Approximately 387,162 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 68% from the average daily volume of 1,197,799 shares. The stock had previously closed at $111.49.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on SJM shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on J. M. Smucker from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of J. M. Smucker from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of J. M. Smucker from $123.00 to $119.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of J. M. Smucker from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen downgraded shares of J. M. Smucker from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $130.00 to $121.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, J. M. Smucker presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $126.13.

J. M. Smucker Stock Performance

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $106.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $112.87. The company has a market cap of $12.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.74, a P/E/G ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.58.

J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $2.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.37 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.23 billion. J. M. Smucker had a net margin of 5.96% and a return on equity of 14.35%. As a group, equities analysts predict that The J. M. Smucker Company will post 9.88 earnings per share for the current year.

J. M. Smucker Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a dividend of $1.08 per share. This represents a $4.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. J. M. Smucker’s payout ratio is -179.25%.

Insider Activity

In other J. M. Smucker news, CFO Tucker H. Marshall sold 994 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.00, for a total transaction of $112,322.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,116,942. The trade was a 5.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 3.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On J. M. Smucker

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its position in J. M. Smucker by 188.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 231 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of J. M. Smucker during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of J. M. Smucker in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new stake in J. M. Smucker in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in J. M. Smucker by 1,329.4% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 243 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.66% of the company’s stock.

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.