Somerville Kurt F Acquires 12,502 Shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Somerville Kurt F increased its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Free Report) by 13.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 108,576 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 12,502 shares during the quarter. McCormick & Company, Incorporated makes up 1.6% of Somerville Kurt F's investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Somerville Kurt F's holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $8,937,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. grew its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 610.9% during the first quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 391 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC grew its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 101.0% during the first quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 402 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.74% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on MKC. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $80.00 to $77.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in a research report on Monday, June 16th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $83.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 5th. Finally, Argus downgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $84.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In related news, insider Katherine Jenkins sold 7,642 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.38, for a total transaction of $583,695.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 23.80% of the company's stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE MKC traded down $0.04 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $72.46. 94,316 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,053,287. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.68. The stock has a market cap of $19.45 billion, a PE ratio of 25.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.68. The company's fifty day moving average is $73.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $76.14. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $69.98 and a fifty-two week high of $86.24.

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

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 7th were paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 7th. McCormick & Company, Incorporated's payout ratio is 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.