StockNews.com Begins Coverage on McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC – Get Rating) in a report issued on Thursday. The firm issued a hold rating on the stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on MKC. Sanford C. Bernstein raised McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and set a $90.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 27th. UBS Group assumed coverage on McCormick & Company, Incorporated in a research report on Friday, March 10th. They set a sell rating and a $71.00 price target on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $83.00 to $74.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $66.00 to $63.00 and set an underweight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $81.14.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Down 0.9 %

McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock traded down $0.63 during trading on Thursday, hitting $72.62. 2,680,300 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,345,484. The business’s 50 day moving average is $75.65 and its 200 day moving average is $78.80. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 52 week low of $70.60 and a 52 week high of $105.19. The company has a market capitalization of $19.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.82, a PEG ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 26th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.86 by ($0.13). McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a return on equity of 14.76% and a net margin of 10.74%. The business had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.77 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.84 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Michael D. Mangan sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total transaction of $375,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 38,137 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,860,275. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 19.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McCormick & Company, Incorporated

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Strategy Asset Managers LLC bought a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 3rd quarter worth about $219,000. AIA Group Ltd increased its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 146.8% during the 2nd quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 1,540 shares of the company’s stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 916 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG increased its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 772,265 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,291,000 after purchasing an additional 19,098 shares during the last quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. increased its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 13.2% during the 3rd quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 11,263 shares of the company’s stock valued at $803,000 after purchasing an additional 1,315 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp increased its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,756,198 shares of the company’s stock valued at $980,404,000 after purchasing an additional 564,889 shares during the last quarter. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About McCormick & Company, Incorporated

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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.