The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company Declares Special One-Time Cash Dividend of $2 per Share, Approves New Share Repurchase Authorization of $500 Million, Increases Recurring Quarterly Dividend Payment

MARYSVILLE, Ohio, Aug. 11, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE: SMG), the world's leading marketer of branded consumer lawn and garden products, announced that its Board of Directors has approved a series of shareholder-friendly initiatives. 

The Company's Board of Directors has approved the following:

• A special one-time cash dividend of $2 per share on the Company's common shares.
• A new share repurchase authorization, which will expire by the end of fiscal 2019, to repurchase up to $500 million of the Company's common shares. This replaces the existing authorization, which will expire on September 30, 2014. 
• A 3 percent increase in the Company's recurring quarterly dividend to $0.45 per share.

"Our recent actions should be viewed as a sign of confidence in the continued success of our business and the positive outlook shared by the Board and leadership team," said Jim Hagedorn, chairman and chief executive officer. "Whether by returning cash to shareholders, achieving a more efficient capital structure or investing in growth opportunities, we remain focused on driving shareholder value."

The fourth quarter dividend of $0.45 per share is payable on Wednesday, September 10, 2014 to shareholders of record as of Wednesday, August 27, 2014.

The special one-time dividend of $2 per share is payable on Wednesday, September 17, 2014 to shareholders of record as of Wednesday, September 3, 2014.

About ScottsMiracle-Gro
With more than $2.8 billion in worldwide sales, The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company is the world's largest marketer of branded consumer products for lawn and garden care. The Company's brands are the most recognized in the industry. In the U.S., the Company's Scotts®, Miracle-Gro® and Ortho® brands are market-leading in their categories, as is the consumer Roundup® brand, which is marketed in North America and most of Europe exclusively by Scotts and owned by Monsanto. In the U.S., we operate Scotts LawnService®, the second largest residential lawn care service business.  In Europe, the Company's brands include Weedol®, Pathclear®, Evergreen®, Levington®, Miracle-Gro®, KB®, Fertiligene® and Substral®. For additional information, visit us at www.scotts.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Statements contained in this press release, other than statements of historical fact, which address activities, events and developments that the Company expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future, including, but not limited to, information regarding the future economic performance and financial condition of the Company, the plans and objectives of the Company's management, and the Company's assumptions regarding such performance and plans are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the U.S. federal securities laws that are subject to risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements generally can be identified as statements that include phrases such as "guidance," "outlook," "projected," "believe," "target," "predict," "estimate," "forecast," "strategy," "may," "goal," "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "foresee," "likely," "will," "should" or other similar words or phrases. Actual results could differ materially from the forward-looking information in this release due to a variety of factors, including, but not limited to:

• Compliance with environmental and other public health regulations could increase the Company's costs of doing business or limit the Company's ability to market all of its products;
• Increases in the prices of raw materials and fuel costs could adversely affect the Company's results of operations;
• The highly competitive nature of the Company's markets could adversely affect its ability to maintain or grow revenues;
• Because of the concentration of the Company's sales to a small number of retail customers, the loss of one or more of, or significant reduction in orders from, its top customers could adversely affect the Company's financial results;
• Adverse weather conditions could adversely impact financial results;
• The Company's international operations make the Company susceptible to fluctuations in currency exchange rates and to other costs and risks associated with international regulation;
• The Company may not be able to adequately protect its intellectual property and other proprietary rights that are material to the Company's business;
• If Monsanto Company were to terminate the Marketing Agreement for consumer Roundup products, the Company would lose a substantial source of future earnings and overhead expense absorption;
• Hagedorn Partnership, L.P. beneficially owns approximately 27% of the Company's common shares and can significantly influence decisions that require the approval of shareholders;
• The Company may pursue acquisitions, dispositions, investments, dividends, share repurchases and/or other corporate transactions that it believes will maximize equity returns of its shareholders but may involve risks. 

Additional detailed information concerning a number of the important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking information contained in this release is readily available in the Company's publicly filed quarterly, annual and other reports. The Company disclaims any obligation to update developments of these risk factors or to announce publicly any revision to any of the forward-looking statements contained in this release, or to make corrections to reflect future events or developments.

SOURCE The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company