Clark & Stuart Inc Makes New Investment in The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM)

Clark & Stuart Inc acquired a new position in shares of The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 69,623 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,667,000. J. M. Smucker accounts for about 5.6% of Clark & Stuart Inc’s holdings, making the stock its 5th largest position. Clark & Stuart Inc owned approximately 0.07% of J. M. Smucker at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SJM. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of J. M. Smucker by 1,329.4% in the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 243 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares during the period. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of J. M. Smucker by 212.6% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 322 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of J. M. Smucker in the 3rd quarter worth $39,000. Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in shares of J. M. Smucker in the third quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC acquired a new position in J. M. Smucker during the third quarter worth about $42,000. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on SJM. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of J. M. Smucker from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Barclays cut their price objective on J. M. Smucker from $126.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded J. M. Smucker from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $135.00 to $125.00 in a report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com upgraded J. M. Smucker from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, TD Cowen downgraded shares of J. M. Smucker from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $130.00 to $121.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $127.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at J. M. Smucker

In other J. M. Smucker news, CFO Tucker H. Marshall sold 994 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.00, for a total value of $112,322.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 18,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,116,942. The trade was a 5.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 3.40% of the company’s stock.

J. M. Smucker Stock Performance

Shares of SJM opened at $101.02 on Monday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $112.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $115.73. The company has a market capitalization of $10.75 billion, a PE ratio of 20.45, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.28. The J. M. Smucker Company has a 52 week low of $100.77 and a 52 week high of $134.62. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 26th. The company reported $2.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.51 by $0.25. J. M. Smucker had a return on equity of 14.35% and a net margin of 5.96%. The business had revenue of $2.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.27 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.59 earnings per share. J. M. Smucker’s quarterly revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that The J. M. Smucker Company will post 9.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

J. M. Smucker Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were given a dividend of $1.08 per share. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. J. M. Smucker’s payout ratio is presently 87.45%.

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.