Benjamin Edwards Inc. Increases Holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Free Report) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 463,837 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 6,917 shares during the quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. owned approximately 0.17% of McCormick & Company, Incorporated worth $35,364,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 4th quarter valued at $223,202,000. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,693,239 shares of the company's stock worth $281,573,000 after purchasing an additional 531,060 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 17.6% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,641,812 shares of the company's stock worth $201,412,000 after acquiring an additional 396,214 shares in the last quarter. Amundi grew its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 37.5% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,372,446 shares of the company's stock worth $102,275,000 after buying an additional 374,559 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 9,283.1% in the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 367,253 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,999,000 after purchasing an additional 363,339 shares in the last quarter. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on MKC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Barclays lowered 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 report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Argus lowered McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $83.14.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Price Performance

Shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock traded up $0.08 during trading on Friday, hitting $76.30. The stock had a trading volume of 573,700 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,962,382. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 12 month low of $66.88 and a 12 month high of $86.24. The firm has a market cap of $20.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.74. The business's 50-day moving average is $78.15 and its 200 day moving average is $77.62.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 25th. The company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.64 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.61 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 11.73%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.63 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th were given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 7th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.36%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated's dividend payout ratio is currently 61.86%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.81, for a total value of $4,090,500.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 247,437 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,242,820.97. The trade was a 16.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Gregory Repas sold 2,750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.42, for a total value of $223,905.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 2,266 shares in the company, valued at approximately $184,497.72. This represents a 54.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 80,842 shares of company stock valued at $6,478,332. Company insiders own 23.80% of the company's stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated 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.