McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Upgraded to Hold at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on MKC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $67.00 to $64.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $67.00 to $58.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $70.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 30th. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $75.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $67.00 to $59.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 20th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $64.27.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock opened at $50.57 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $13.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.71. The company’s 50 day moving average is $61.48 and its 200 day moving average is $64.57. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a twelve month low of $47.52 and a twelve month high of $78.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $1.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.79 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 23.12% and a return on equity of 13.29%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.60 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 20th will be paid a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 20th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio is 31.48%.

Insider Transactions at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In other news, Director Jacques Tapiero sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.09, for a total value of $335,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 31,596 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,119,775.64. This represents a 13.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael D. Mangan sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.92, for a total transaction of $339,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 43,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,922,529.68. This trade represents a 10.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 115,000 shares of company stock valued at $7,947,300 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 10.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of McCormick & Company, Incorporated

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MKC. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the third quarter worth $28,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators boosted its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 67.8% during the fourth quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 406 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation National Association UT boosted its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 340.0% during the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 462 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. 79.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About McCormick & Company, Incorporated

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.