McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Shares Acquired by Optas LLC

Optas LLC boosted its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 16.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,990 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 426 shares during the quarter. Optas LLC’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $228,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MKC. Wallington Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 3.4% in the third quarter. Wallington Asset Management LLC now owns 4,136 shares of the company’s stock valued at $340,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC grew its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC now owns 12,536 shares of the company’s stock worth $954,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the period. Aurora Investment Counsel raised its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Aurora Investment Counsel now owns 8,443 shares of the company’s stock valued at $695,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 20,134 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,657,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the period. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 0.9% during the third quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 19,482 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,603,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In other news, Director Jacques Tapiero sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.34, for a total transaction of $386,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 28,217 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,182,302.78. The trade was a 15.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 22.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Price Performance

MKC opened at $76.89 on Wednesday. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 52-week low of $64.33 and a 52-week high of $85.49. The company has a 50 day moving average of $76.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $78.28. The company has a market cap of $20.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.24, a P/E/G ratio of 3.67 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.03. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 11.73%. On average, analysts expect that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 30th were issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 30th. This is a boost from McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $85.00 to $91.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, TD Cowen raised shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $86.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $83.75.

About McCormick & Company, Incorporated

McCormick & Co, Inc engages in the manufacturing, marketing, and distribution of spices, seasoning mixes, condiments, and other flavorful products to retail outlets, food manufacturers, and foodservice businesses. It operates through the Consumer and Flavor Solutions segments. The Consumer segment sells spices, seasonings, condiments, and sauces.