What's Happening with SJM
J.M. Smucker (SJM) will likely announce its annual dividend increase this week. Smucker has boosted its dividend each of the last 17 years, and the stock currently offers a 2.8% yield.
Technical Analysis
SJM stock was recently trading at $119.73 down $8.7 from its 12-month high and $28.41 above its 12-month low. InvestorsObserver's Stock Score Report gives SJM a 66 long-term technical score and a 50 short-term technical score. The stock has recent support above $115 and recent resistance below $125. Of the 11 analysts who cover the stock 1 rate it Strong Buy, 0 rate it Buy, 9 rate it Hold, 0 rate it Sell, and 1 rate it Strong Sell, SJM gets a score of 47 from InvestorsObserver's Stock Score Report.
Analysts' Thoughts
Smucker has a nice 17-year streak of dividend increases which it can easily afford to extend when it announces its next distribution, which could come as early as this week. SJM has traded slightly lower over the last month after hitting a 52-week high in mid-May. The stock has a low payout ratio of 40.3% and a current yield of 2.8%. Last year the company boosted its dividend by 9% and in the previous year the distribution was lifted 4%. Given the low payout ratio I expect this year's increase to be closer in line with last year's. Look for the company to announce it is increasing its quarterly payout from $0.85 to around $0.92 for an increase of 8.2%. In June the company reported mixed quarterly numbers with an earnings beat and a sales miss which has brought some pessimism into the stock, but another dividend increase will help the stock find a solid support level and start to move higher. Analysts have an average price target of $119.75 on the stock, which will trade ex-dividend in mid-August.