McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Director Lawrence Erik Kurzius Sells 50,000 Shares

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Director Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.81, for a total transaction of $4,090,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 247,437 shares in the company, valued at $20,242,820.97. This trade represents a 16.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Price Performance

MKC stock traded down $0.91 on Wednesday, reaching $81.34. 1,662,948 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,898,503. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $79.59 and a 200-day moving average of $78.79. The firm has a market cap of $21.81 billion, a PE ratio of 27.76, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.71. 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 has a twelve month low of $66.88 and a twelve month high of $86.24.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 25th. The company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.64 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.61 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 11.73%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.63 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.21%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s payout ratio is 61.86%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McCormick & Company, Incorporated

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MKC. Bridgewater Associates LP purchased a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the third quarter worth $348,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 13.4% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 11,019 shares of the company’s stock worth $907,000 after buying an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co acquired a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the 3rd quarter worth $418,000. Ascent Group LLC grew its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 23.8% in the 3rd quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 5,192 shares of the company’s stock valued at $427,000 after acquiring an additional 998 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Centiva Capital LP acquired a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 3rd quarter valued at about $559,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on MKC shares. TD Cowen upgraded McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $86.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Argus cut shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $85.00 to $91.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, McCormick & Company, Incorporated presently has an average rating of “Hold” 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.