Panagora Asset Management Inc. Reduces Stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Panagora Asset Management Inc. lessened its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 5.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 47,334 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,570 shares during the quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $3,358,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MKC. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 87.5% during the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 375 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 16.5% during the first quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 944 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other McCormick & Company, Incorporated news, Director Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 25,000 shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total transaction of $1,875,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 199,258 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,944,350. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 22.90% of the company’s stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MKC traded up $1.00 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $80.03. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,899,682 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,924,281. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.31. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 52 week low of $59.13 and a 52 week high of $83.48. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $74.38 and a two-hundred day moving average of $72.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.50 billion, a PE ratio of 29.03, a P/E/G ratio of 4.02 and a beta of 0.75.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 27th. The company reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $1.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.63 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a return on equity of 14.63% and a net margin of 11.07%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.60 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 8th were issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 8th. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MKC. Citigroup raised shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $68.00 to $69.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. TD Cowen cut their price target on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $75.00 to $73.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $76.25.

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.