Scotts Miracle-Gro Co
F:SCQA
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Scotts Miracle-Gro Co
F:SCQA
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Hill and Smith PLC
SWB:7HL
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Scotts Miracle-Gro Co
Scotts Miracle-Gro makes the branded products people use to grow and care for lawns, gardens, and houseplants. Its core lineup includes grass seed, fertilizer, weed and pest control, potting soils, and other garden care items sold under names like Scotts, Miracle-Gro, and Ortho. It also sells indoor growing and hydroponic equipment through its Hawthorne business. Its main customers are home gardeners, homeowners, and lawn-care buyers, along with indoor growers and hydroponic cultivators. The company sells mostly through mass retailers, home improvement stores, garden centers, and online channels, then earns money when those stores and growers buy its finished products and equipment. What makes the business easy to understand is that it sits close to the end customer and depends on trusted consumer brands rather than custom-made products. In the lawn and garden market, that brand recognition matters because shoppers often choose the label they know for seasonal needs. In hydroponics, it plays the role of a supplier to controlled-environment growers who need nutrients, lights, and other tools to grow indoors.
Scotts Miracle-Gro makes the branded products people use to grow and care for lawns, gardens, and houseplants. Its core lineup includes grass seed, fertilizer, weed and pest control, potting soils, and other garden care items sold under names like Scotts, Miracle-Gro, and Ortho. It also sells indoor growing and hydroponic equipment through its Hawthorne business.
Its main customers are home gardeners, homeowners, and lawn-care buyers, along with indoor growers and hydroponic cultivators. The company sells mostly through mass retailers, home improvement stores, garden centers, and online channels, then earns money when those stores and growers buy its finished products and equipment.
What makes the business easy to understand is that it sits close to the end customer and depends on trusted consumer brands rather than custom-made products. In the lawn and garden market, that brand recognition matters because shoppers often choose the label they know for seasonal needs. In hydroponics, it plays the role of a supplier to controlled-environment growers who need nutrients, lights, and other tools to grow indoors.
Guidance raised: Scotts Miracle-Gro reaffirmed fiscal 2026 guidance overall, but raised adjusted EPS guidance to $4.30 to $4.45 from $4.15 to $4.35, pointing to strong execution, margin discipline, and free cash flow.
Sales trend: Third-quarter net sales rose 1% to $1.17 billion, while year-to-date sales were up 2% to $2.99 billion, helped by branded products and e-commerce.
Mix shift: Management continued to push away from lower-margin commodity volume and toward branded products, including innovation in grass seed, fertilizer, and pest control.
Near-term caution: Retail inventories were described as slightly elevated, which is expected to slow fourth-quarter purchasing and likely push U.S. consumer sales growth toward the low end of guidance.
Margin outlook: Despite higher freight and commodity costs in the quarter, management said gross margin expansion remains the plan for fiscal 2027 through pricing, cost-out actions, mix improvement, and innovation.
Strategy update: Nate Baxter outlined a reshaped SMG 2.0 plan, including new leadership roles, more investment in AI, automation, technology, and data analytics, and a more measured approach to capital allocation and buybacks.
Investor Day ahead: Management repeatedly pointed investors to next week’s Investor Day for more detail on long-term targets, capital allocation, pricing, and the path back toward 3% sales growth.