Johnson Stephen L 4

What Happened
Stephen L. Johnson, a director of SCOTTS MIRACLE‑GRO CO (SMG), was granted 105 shares on 2026-07-01. The filing reports an acquisition at $68.57 per share, a reported value of $7,200. The grant was issued as deferred stock units (DSUs) in lieu of his cash retainer — a routine compensation award rather than an open‑market purchase.

Key Details

• Transaction date: 2026-07-01; Form 4 filed: 2026-07-06.
• Transaction type: Award/Grant (code A).
• Shares acquired: 105 at $68.57 each; reported total value $7,200.
• Footnote: DSUs were issued in lieu of retainer in the amount of $7,188 (filing footnote).
• Shares owned after the transaction: not disclosed in the provided excerpt.
• Timeliness: The Form 4 was filed five days after the transaction date; Form 4s are generally due within two business days, so this filing appears to fall outside that normal window.

Context
Deferred stock units are a form of director compensation that convert to company shares (or cash equal to share value) at a future date or upon separation; they are routine and typically reflect pay election choices, not a direct buy/sell signal. For retail investors, awards like this are common and do not by themselves indicate a change in insider sentiment the way open‑market purchases might.