J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) Sets New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday. The company traded as high as $136.22 and last traded at $133.3910, with a volume of 486,029 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $132.43.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on SJM shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $125.00 price objective on J. M. Smucker in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of J. M. Smucker from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of J. M. Smucker from $145.00 to $137.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of J. M. Smucker from $129.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price target on shares of J. M. Smucker from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, J. M. Smucker has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $136.00.

J. M. Smucker Stock Up 0.8%

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $124.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $111.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.26.

J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 26th. The company reported $3.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $1.02. J. M. Smucker had a return on equity of 19.85% and a net margin of 2.51%. The company had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.13 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.90 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. J. M. Smucker has set its FY 2027 guidance at 10.500-11.000 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that The J. M. Smucker Company will post 10.71 earnings per share for the current year.

J. M. Smucker Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 13th. J. M. Smucker’s payout ratio is presently 209.35%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Robert Ferguson sold 2,522 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.41, for a total value of $333,938.02. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 36,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,805,820.95. This represents a 6.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Tucker Marshall sold 18,482 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.05, for a total transaction of $2,440,548.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 38,699 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,110,202.95. The trade was a 32.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of J. M. Smucker

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Archer Investment Corp bought a new position in J. M. Smucker in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. increased its holdings in shares of J. M. Smucker by 246.6% in the third quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 253 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the period. Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of J. M. Smucker by 206.7% in the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 276 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the period. USA Financial Formulas bought a new position in shares of J. M. Smucker in the third quarter worth $37,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of J. M. Smucker by 89.5% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 523 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

J. M. Smucker Company Profile

The J. M. Smucker Company, founded in 1897 by Jerome Monroe Smucker in Orrville, Ohio, is a food and beverage company serving consumers primarily in the United States and Canada. The company sells branded products through grocery retailers, club stores, e-commerce channels, foodservice distributors and other outlets.

Its portfolio includes coffee brands such as Folgers, Dunkin’ and Café Bustelo; fruit spreads and toppings sold under the Smucker’s name; and peanut butter and related products under the Jif brand.