McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Shares Purchased by Motley Fool Asset Management LLC

Motley Fool Asset Management LLC raised its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 7.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,952 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 268 shares during the quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $301,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MKC. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 21.7% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 139,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,500,000 after acquiring an additional 24,881 shares during the last quarter. DJE Kapital AG acquired a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the fourth quarter worth $4,228,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the fourth quarter worth $234,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 16.6% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 136,891 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,547,000 after buying an additional 19,491 shares during the period. Finally, DAVENPORT & Co LLC grew its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 16.4% in the fourth quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 87,870 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,699,000 after buying an additional 12,356 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In other McCormick & Company, Incorporated news, Director Margaret M. V. Preston sold 28,092 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.03, for a total transaction of $2,163,926.76. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,177 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $475,814.31. This trade represents a 81.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.81, for a total value of $4,090,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 247,437 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,242,820.97. The trade was a 16.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 23.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Argus cut McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. TD Cowen upgraded 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 report on Wednesday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $85.00 to $91.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, McCormick & Company, Incorporated presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.14.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Performance

Shares of MKC stock opened at $80.69 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $21.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.54, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.71. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $79.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $78.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 12 month low of $66.88 and a 12 month high of $86.24.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 25th. The company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.64 by ($0.04). McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 11.73%. The business had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.61 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.63 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be issued 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 yield of 2.23%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s payout ratio is currently 61.86%.

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.