Scotts Miracle-Gro plunges after guidance cut
The lawn and garden company said sales are suffering as demand slows down. Executives are not giving new guidance.
The gardening season reaches a peak in May -- and that's traditionally the time to shine for Scotts Miracle-Gro (SMG).But this has been a rough spring for the company. Sales of its products in U.S. stores are only up 3% this year, down from 8% growth back in May. The downturn was enough to force executives to cut their full-year guidance of 6% to 8% sales growth and earnings estimate of $2.65 to $2.85 a share.
The company warned investors Tuesday afternoon of the coming guidance cut. It won't give new numbers until its third-quarter earnings update in August.
Investors dropped the stock in after-hours trading, sending shares down more than 15% from Tuesday's $43.05 close.
Demand is simply slowing down, Scotts said in a statement, after a strong start in the second quarter. The gardening season "has not met expectations," the company said. The slump may be partly due to poor sales in the sale of flower and vegetable plants. The turmoil in Europe will also hurt the company's business there, executives added.
Scotts CEO Jim Hagedorn posted a lengthy video message about the situation on the company's website. The company will use the next six weeks to perform a detailed analysis about the gardening season, he said. "Category growth is becoming harder to achieve," he added.
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| Tags: | Kim PetersonSMG |
I walk around my neighborhood every morning 2 1/2 miles on a walking trail and sidewalk. I live in a gated community PUD w/ 3 pools, 6 parks, 100 ac. lake for fishing and boating, 15 Tennis Courts, and a Golf Course. I have been walking this area for almost 4 years that I have lived in my home. A blind man could see that 1 out of every 5 houses are vacant (20%) and the yards need major beautifications. There are not cut, edged, shubbery maintained and certainly not fertilized. I am surprised Scotts products or any gardening products company are holding the line that close. The economy is the reason business is off so bad. Scotts has great products and I use them 3 to 4 times a year.
Election day is coming up in November be sure to vote because your personal net value decreased 14% in the last 3 1/2 years and the national debt grew by Trillions of dollars and gasoline has more that doubled. What will the economy be like in 3 1/2 more years unless something changes? Vote!!!!!!!
Today I picked some of the tastiest radishes, crisp baby cucumbers and topped it off with some sugar snap peas. All tossed in with fresh leaf lettuce. The garden is thriving this year.
The secret: going to a local dairy and them allowing me to load up on the dried cow plies they have all over their pasture. If you mix it into your garden soil while its dry, the smell you might think would be a drawback is non-existent. And one always washes of fresh food from the garden anyway therfore, Miracle Gro or Mooo-acle Gro, does not matter which I use.
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