McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Shares Sold by Vontobel Holding Ltd.

Vontobel Holding Ltd. trimmed its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 0.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 48,050 shares of the company’s stock after selling 163 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $3,663,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MKC. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the third quarter valued at about $40,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton purchased a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial purchased a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the third quarter valued at about $49,000. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MKC. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $85.00 to $91.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. TD Cowen raised shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $86.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, 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 research note on Monday, January 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, McCormick & Company, Incorporated has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $83.75.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Margaret M. V. Preston sold 28,092 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.03, for a total value of $2,163,926.76. Following the sale, the director now owns 6,177 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $475,814.31. This trade represents a 81.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 22.90% of the company’s stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Trading Down 0.6 %

NYSE MKC opened at $77.07 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $76.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $78.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.74. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a one year low of $64.86 and a one year high of $85.49. The firm has a market cap of $20.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.30, a PEG ratio of 3.67 and a beta of 0.75.

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

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 30th were paid a $0.45 dividend. This is a positive change from McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 30th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.34%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.43%.

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.