NFJ Investment Group LLC Decreases Stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

NFJ Investment Group LLC lowered its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 82.4% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 39,725 shares of the company’s stock after selling 186,284 shares during the period. NFJ Investment Group LLC’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $3,269,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 87.5% during the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 375 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the third quarter valued at about $28,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the second quarter valued at about $29,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the second quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the second quarter worth about $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. BNP Paribas upgraded McCormick & Company, Incorporated to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Bank of America upped their target price on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $79.57.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Michael D. Mangan sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.00, for a total value of $395,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 40,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,194,444. This represents a 11.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 20,000 shares of company stock worth $1,565,850. Insiders own 22.90% of the company’s stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Price Performance

Shares of MKC stock opened at $78.00 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $78.80 and its 200 day moving average is $76.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock has a market cap of $20.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.53, a PEG ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.75. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a twelve month low of $63.88 and a twelve month high of $85.49.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The company reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 11.87% and a return on equity of 15.30%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.65 EPS. Research analysts expect that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 2.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This is an increase from McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 30th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.14%.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Company Profile

McCormick & Company, Incorporated manufactures, markets, and distributes spices, seasoning mixes, condiments, and other flavorful products to the food industry. It operates in two segments, Consumer and Flavor Solutions. The Consumer segment offers spices, herbs, and seasonings, as well as condiments and sauces, and desserts.