McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Shares Sold by Man Group plc

Man Group plc lessened its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Free Report) by 73.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 107,521 shares of the company's stock after selling 293,046 shares during the quarter. Man Group plc's holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $8,197,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MKC. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the fourth quarter valued at about $223,202,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 47.5% in the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,843,273 shares of the company's stock valued at $216,771,000 after purchasing an additional 915,807 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 16.8% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,693,239 shares of the company's stock valued at $281,573,000 after purchasing an additional 531,060 shares during the period. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. grew its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 88.2% in the fourth quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 879,260 shares of the company's stock valued at $67,035,000 after purchasing an additional 412,074 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its position 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 valued at $201,412,000 after purchasing an additional 396,214 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.74% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McCormick & Company, Incorporated news, Director Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 50,000 shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.81, for a total transaction of $4,090,500.00. Following the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Katherine Jenkins sold 7,642 shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 60,392 shares of company stock valued at $4,898,101 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 23.80% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MKC. Argus lowered shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Barclays decreased 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 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $83.14.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Performance

NYSE:MKC opened at $74.30 on Tuesday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $77.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $77.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company has a market cap of $19.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.36, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.74. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a twelve month low of $66.88 and a twelve month high of $86.24.

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

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 7th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 7th. McCormick & Company, Incorporated's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.86%.

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.

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