McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Stock Rating Upgraded by TD Cowen

TD Cowen upgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has $90.00 price objective on the stock, up from their prior price objective of $86.00.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. BNP Paribas raised shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of 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 report on Monday, December 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.50.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Trading Down 4.2 %

MKC stock opened at $71.40 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.71. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $77.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $77.75. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 52 week low of $63.88 and a 52 week high of $85.49. The company has a market capitalization of $19.16 billion, a PE ratio of 24.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.75.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 30th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 30th. This is an increase from McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.22%.

Insider Transactions at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In related news, Director Jacques Tapiero sold 5,000 shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.33, for a total value of $391,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 28,217 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,210,237.61. This trade represents a 15.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 20,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,565,850 in the last quarter. 22.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of McCormick & Company, Incorporated

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MKC. State Street Corp grew its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 15,315,905 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,260,499,000 after purchasing an additional 1,114,706 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 97,525.5% during the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 976,255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $69,256,000 after acquiring an additional 975,255 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the 2nd quarter valued at $51,286,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 2,778.8% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 456,920 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,606,000 after acquiring an additional 441,048 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 111.2% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 733,588 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,041,000 after acquiring an additional 386,320 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

About McCormick & Company, Incorporated

McCormick & Company, Incorporated manufactures, markets, and distributes spices, seasoning mixes, condiments, and other flavorful products to the food industry. It operates in two segments, Consumer and Flavor Solutions. The Consumer segment offers spices, herbs, and seasonings, as well as condiments and sauces, and desserts.