McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Shares Bought by Vanguard Group Inc.

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. has increased its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 0.4%, owning 31,874,039 shares worth approximately $2.62 billion, representing 11.89% of the company.
• Analysts have mixed views on McCormick, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and a price target of $83.00, while Citigroup and Stifel Nicolaus recently lowered their price targets for the stock.
• The company reported quarterly earnings of $0.69 per share, exceeding expectations, with a revenue of $1.66 billion, reflecting a year-over-year increase of 1%.

Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Free Report) by 0.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,874,039 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 136,729 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 11.89% of McCormick & Company, Incorporated worth $2,623,552,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MKC. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 602,986 shares of the company's stock worth $45,972,000 after purchasing an additional 11,563 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 17.6% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,641,812 shares of the company's stock worth $201,412,000 after purchasing an additional 396,214 shares in the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. lifted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 22.7% during the fourth quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 164,655 shares of the company's stock worth $12,123,000 after purchasing an additional 30,418 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 43,002 shares of the company's stock worth $3,278,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Finally, F M Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the fourth quarter valued at $1,825,000. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group assumed coverage on McCormick & Company, Incorporated in a research note on Monday, June 16th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $83.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup reduced their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $80.00 to $77.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $82.00 to $76.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $83.00.

Insider Activity

In other McCormick & Company, Incorporated news, insider Katherine Jenkins sold 7,642 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.38, for a total transaction of $583,695.96. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 23.80% of the company's stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Up 0.2%

McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock opened at $70.37 on Friday. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 1-year low of $69.13 and a 1-year high of $86.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The stock has a market cap of $18.89 billion, a PE ratio of 24.43, a P/E/G ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.66. The stock's fifty day moving average is $73.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.86.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 26th. The company reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.04. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a return on equity of 14.43% and a net margin of 11.50%. The company had revenue of $1.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.67 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.69 earnings per share. McCormick & Company, Incorporated's quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 7th were issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 7th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.50%.

About McCormick & Company, Incorporated

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.

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