Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC Lowers Position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated $MKC

Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC lowered its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 20.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 66,386 shares of the company’s stock after selling 17,094 shares during the period. Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $4,522,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 34,678 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,854,000 after buying an additional 925 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 19.0% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 5,903 shares of the company’s stock valued at $486,000 after buying an additional 941 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP raised its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 40.9% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 21,334 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,756,000 after buying an additional 6,189 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the 2nd quarter valued at about $6,520,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 37,888 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,873,000 after buying an additional 2,176 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Price Performance

MKC opened at $48.65 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $49.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $59.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.36. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 1 year low of $44.82 and a 1 year high of $78.16. The firm has a market cap of $13.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.97, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.65.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.05. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a return on equity of 13.29% and a net margin of 23.12%.The business had revenue of $1.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.79 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.60 EPS. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.09 earnings per share for the current year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 27th. Investors of record on Monday, April 20th were given a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 20th. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.48%.

Insider Transactions at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In related news, Director Gavin Hattersley purchased 2,000 shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 10th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $52.98 per share, for a total transaction of $105,960.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,906 shares in the company, valued at $153,959.88. The trade was a 220.75% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 10.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MKC has been the topic of a number of research reports. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $75.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $83.00 to $75.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $65.00 to $55.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, HSBC decreased their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $69.00 to $55.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $63.36.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Profile

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE: MKC) is a global leader in spices, seasonings and flavor solutions. Headquartered in Hunt Valley, Maryland, the company traces its origins to the late 19th century and has grown into a major manufacturer and marketer of branded and private?label flavor products for consumer, industrial and foodservice markets.

McCormick’s product portfolio includes pure spices and herbs, blended seasonings, marinades, rubs, sauces, extracts and specialty flavorings, along with ingredient systems and custom flavor development for manufacturers and foodservice operators.