Vestcor Inc Grows Stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Vestcor Inc lifted its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 25.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,043 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,036 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $415,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 6.5% in the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,133 shares of the company’s stock worth $364,000 after buying an additional 315 shares during the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp raised its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 632,674 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,882,000 after acquiring an additional 6,588 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the second quarter valued at about $29,000. KFG Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 1.5% during the second quarter. KFG Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,434 shares of the company’s stock worth $740,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the period. Finally, Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the second quarter worth about $3,688,000. Institutional investors own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on MKC shares. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $85.00 to $91.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. BNP Paribas raised McCormick & Company, Incorporated to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $81.00.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Down 1.0 %

MKC stock opened at $80.56 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $78.37 and its 200 day moving average is $76.73. The stock has a market cap of $21.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 1-year low of $63.88 and a 1-year high of $85.49.

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

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 30th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. This is a boost from McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 30th. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.14%.

Insider Transactions at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In related news, Director Jacques Tapiero sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.33, for a total value of $391,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 28,217 shares in the company, valued at $2,210,237.61. The trade was a 15.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In the last three months, insiders sold 20,000 shares of company stock worth $1,565,850. 22.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated 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.