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ScottsMiracle - Gro Announces Record Second Quarter Results ; Sales Increase 32 % Driven by Strong Demand in Both Major Segments scottsmiraclegro.gcs-web.com/news-releases/news-release-details/scotts miracle - gro - announces - record - second - quarter - results - sales Sales guidance for Hawthorne increases ; U.S. Consumer continues to exceed expectations • Hawthorne sales rise 66 % in Q2 with strong growth in all product categories • U.S. Consumer sales rise 23 % driven by continued increases in consumer demand • GAAP EPS : $ 5.44 versus $ 4.43 ; Non - GAAP adjusted EPS of $ 5.64 versus $ 4.50 Company affirms plan to increase pricing to offset continued commodity pressure MARYSVILLE , Ohio , May 05 , 2021 ( GLOBE NEWSWIRE ) -- The Scotts Miracle - Gro Company ( NYSE : SMG ) , the world's leading marketer of branded consumer lawn and garden as well as indoor and hydroponic growing products , today announced company - wide sales increased 32 percent in its fiscal second quarter driven by strong volume growth in both major business segments . For the quarter ended April 3 , 2021 , GAAP earnings from continuing operations were $ 5.44 per share compared with $ 4.43 per share in the prior year . Non - GAAP adjusted earnings , which exclude impairment , restructuring and other non - recurring items , and are the basis of the Company's financial guidance , were $ 5.64 per share compared with $ 4.50 a year ago . On a fiscal year - to - date basis entering May , consumer purchases of the Company's lawn and garden products at its largest four retailers in the U.S. increased over 20 percent from the same period a year ago . The Company said consumer purchases entering May were up double digits in every major product category and all regions of the U.S. " The record level of consumer demand we have seen for our lawn and garden products is greater than we expected and may provide upside to the updated guidance we provided for our U.S. Consumer business in early April , " said Jim Hagedorn , chairman and chief executive officer . " Consumers told us entering the season that they intended to stay engaged with lawn and garden and , so far , that is exactly what they are doing . Retailer support for the category remains strong as we enter a period of challenging year - over - year comparisons . " We also continue to exceed expectations at Hawthorne as we reported our fifth consecutive quarter of sales growth in excess of 60 percent and another month of strong results in April . Given the current momentum of this business , we feel comfortable once again increasing our sales guidance for Hawthorne to a range of 30 to 40 percent growth on a fiscal year basis . " Second quarter details For the fiscal second quarter , the Company reported sales of $ 1.83 billion , up 32 percent from $ 1.38 billion a year earlier . U.S. Consumer segment sales increased 23 percent to $ 1.37 billion . Sales for the Hawthorne segment increased 66 percent to $ 363.8 million . Due to the Company's fiscal calendar , the second quarter of 2021 ended six days later than the second quarter of fiscal 2020. The shift had a sales impact of approximately $ 122.5 million within the lawn and garden business , impacting the U.S. Consumer and Other segments . The company - wide gross margin rate was 36.0 percent on a GAAP basis and 36.6 percent on a non - GAAP adjusted basis compared with a rate of 39.8 percent and 40.0 percent , respectively , a year ago . As expected , segment mix was a significant driver of the decline given the growth of the lower - margin Hawthorne segment . Higher commodity and distribution costs also negatively impacted the rate but were partially offset by improved fixed cost leverage . " The margin pressure we are experiencing from higher commodity and distribution costs is expected again in the third quarter and should begin to moderate with year - over - year pricing that takes effect in the fourth quarter , " said Cory Miller , senior vice president and interim chief financial officer . " Given cost pressures and other investments necessary to keep pace with recent growth trends , we have communicated to our retail partners our intention to increase prices of our consumer lawn and garden products by mid- to high - single digits effective in August . A similar price increase was implemented at Hawthorne in recent weeks . " Selling , general and administrative expenses ( SG & A ) increased 18 percent to $ 231.5 million due to increased marketing investment and higher accruals related to variable compensation . On a company - wide basis , GAAP income from continuing operations was $ 311.1 million , or $ 5.44 per diluted share , compared with $ 249.8 million , or $ 4.43 per diluted share , for the second quarter of fiscal 2020. These results include impairment , restructuring and other non - recurring items . Excluding these items , non - GAAP adjusted earnings were $ 322.3 million , or $ 5.64 per diluted share , compared with $ 253.8 million , or $ 4.50 per diluted share , last year . Year - to - date details For the first six months of fiscal 2021 , the Company reported sales of $ 2.58 billion , up 47 percent from $ 1.75 billion a year earlier . U.S. Consumer segment sales increased 39 percent to $ 1.78 billion . Sales for the Hawthorne segment increased 68 percent to $ 673.2 million . The shift in the fiscal calendar contributed approximately $ 176.9 million . This impact will reverse in the second half of the year , which will have six fewer days than the second half of fiscal 2020 . The company - wide gross margin rate was 32.9 percent on a GAAP basis and 33.7 percent on a non - GAAP adjusted basis compared with a rate of 34.6 percent and 34.8 percent , respectively , a year ago . Selling , general and administrative expense ( SG & A ) increased 23 percent to $ 388.2 million . 1/11