NEW YORK, June 07, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Gainey McKenna & Egleston announces that a securities class action lawsuit has been filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio on behalf of all persons and entities who purchased securities of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (“Scotts Miracle-Gro” or the “Company”) (NYSE: SMG) between November 3, 2021 and August 1, 2023, inclusive (the “Class Period”).
The Complaint alleges that Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) Scotts Miracle-Gro had an oversupply of inventory that far exceeded consumer demand; and (ii) Scotts Miracle-Gro executives engaged in a scheme to saturate Scotts Miracle-Gro’s sales channel with more product than those retailers could sell through to end users, a practice that required Scotts Miracle-Gro sales personnel to pressure retailers to purchase more inventory than they wanted or needed.
The Complaint also alleges that on June 8, 2022, Scotts Miracle-Gro admitted that replenishment orders from its U.S. retailers were more than $300 million below target in the month of May alone, 2022 full-year earnings would be roughly half of Scotts Miracle-Gro’s prior guidance, and Scotts Miracle-Gro would take on additional debt to cover restructuring charges as it attempted to cut costs. On this news, the price of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock fell nearly 9%.
Then, on August 2, 2023, Scotts Miracle-Gro disclosed that: (i) it had modified its debt covenants to permit a 7.00 times debt-to-EBITDA ratio, from the original covenant that only permitted a 6.25 times debt-to-EBITDA ratio; (ii) quarterly sales for Scotts Miracle-Gro’s third quarter had declined by 6% and gross margins fell by 420 basis points; and (iii) Scotts Miracle-Gro slashed fiscal year EBITDA guidance by 25% and announced it had to take a $20 million write down for “pandemic driven excess inventories.” On this news, the price of Scotts Miracle-Gro stock fell more than 19%.
Investors who purchased or otherwise acquired shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro should contact the Firm prior to the August 5, 2024 lead plaintiff motion deadline. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. If you wish to discuss your rights or interests regarding this class action, please contact Thomas J. McKenna, Esq. or Gregory M. Egleston, Esq. of Gainey McKenna & Egleston at (212) 983-1300, or via e-mail at tjmckenna@gme-law.com or gegleston@gme-law.com.
Please visit our website at http://www.gme-law.com for more information about the firm.
