McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Position Boosted by Smartleaf Asset Management LLC

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 50.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,773 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 597 shares during the quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $134,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MKC. State Street Corp raised its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 7.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 15,315,905 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,260,499,000 after acquiring an additional 1,114,706 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 58.2% in the third quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,544,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $127,115,000 after purchasing an additional 568,276 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 2,778.8% in the third quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 456,920 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,606,000 after purchasing an additional 441,048 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 321.2% in the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 449,870 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,298,000 after purchasing an additional 343,070 shares during the period. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 187.9% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 296,419 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,395,000 after purchasing an additional 193,453 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Margaret M. V. Preston sold 28,092 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.03, for a total transaction of $2,163,926.76. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 6,177 shares in the company, 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 filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 23.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Price Performance

NYSE MKC opened at $82.66 on Friday. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 12 month low of $66.88 and a 12 month high of $85.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.17 billion, a PE ratio of 28.21, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.71. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $77.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $78.76.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.03. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 11.73% and a return on equity of 14.89%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on MKC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $85.00 to $91.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $86.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $83.75.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Company Profile

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.