Sound Financial Strategies Group LLC Has $615,000 Stake in The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM)

Sound Financial Strategies Group LLC trimmed its position in The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) by 12.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,864 shares of the company’s stock after selling 713 shares during the quarter. Sound Financial Strategies Group LLC’s holdings in J. M. Smucker were worth $615,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Cognios Beta Neutral Large Cap Fund LP acquired a new position in shares of J. M. Smucker during the fourth quarter valued at $426,000. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp lifted its stake in shares of J. M. Smucker by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp now owns 18,393 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,325,000 after acquiring an additional 477 shares during the period. Schnieders Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of J. M. Smucker during the fourth quarter valued at $420,000. Wolverine Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of J. M. Smucker by 300.0% during the fourth quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in shares of J. M. Smucker during the fourth quarter valued at $186,000. 81.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SJM has been the topic of several analyst reports. Citigroup cut their target price on 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. StockNews.com raised J. M. Smucker from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on J. M. Smucker from $126.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. TD Cowen dropped their price target on J. M. Smucker from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised 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. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, J. M. Smucker presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $137.47.

J. M. Smucker Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SJM traded up $0.85 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $118.55. 1,335,946 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,270,682. The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The J. M. Smucker Company has a 12 month low of $107.33 and a 12 month high of $159.92. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $120.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $120.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.59 billion, a PE ratio of -134.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.21.

J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $2.48 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $2.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.22 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.21 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that The J. M. Smucker Company will post 9.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

J. M. Smucker Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.06 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.58%. J. M. Smucker’s payout ratio is currently -481.81%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jeannette L. Knudsen sold 3,200 shares of J. M. Smucker stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 8,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,116,192.42. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 3.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.