Vest Financial LLC Sells 48,160 Shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated $MKC

Key Points

• Vest Financial reduced its stake in McCormick by 6.3%, selling 48,160 shares and ending the quarter with 719,260 shares (about 0.27% of the company) valued at ~$48.99 million; insiders have also sold 65,000 shares recently while insiders still own 10.6% and institutions hold ~79.7% of the stock.
• Q1 results beat expectations: McCormick reported $0.66 EPS vs. $0.61 expected and revenue of $1.87 billion (up 16.7% YoY vs. $1.79B consensus), and paid a $0.48 quarterly dividend (annualized yield ~3.8%).
• Analysts have trimmed price targets and the consensus is an average "Hold" rating with a $64.27 target; the stock trades near $50.40 with a 12‑month range of $47.52–$78.16 and a P/E of 8.26.

Vest Financial LLC cut its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Free Report) by 6.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 719,260 shares of the company's stock after selling 48,160 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC owned about 0.27% of McCormick & Company, Incorporated worth $48,989,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MKC. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 66.7% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,232,337 shares of the company's stock valued at $417,006,000 after purchasing an additional 2,494,544 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 67.2% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,797,533 shares of the company's stock valued at $187,183,000 after purchasing an additional 1,124,003 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 15,522,816 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,038,632,000 after purchasing an additional 747,844 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. bought a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 3rd quarter valued at $48,576,000. Finally, Scopus Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 191.0% during the 3rd quarter. Scopus Asset Management L.P. now owns 885,250 shares of the company's stock valued at $59,232,000 after acquiring an additional 581,017 shares during the period. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MKC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their target price on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $85.00 to $77.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. BTIG Research assumed coverage on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. They issued a "neutral" rating for the company. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $67.00 to $58.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $67.00 to $59.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, McCormick & Company, Incorporated has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $64.27.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Price Performance

Shares of MKC stock opened at $50.40 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a twelve month low of $47.52 and a twelve month high of $78.16. The company has a market cap of $13.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.71. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $57.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $63.30.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.79 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a return on equity of 13.29% and a net margin of 23.12%.McCormick & Company, Incorporated's revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.60 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 20th were given a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 20th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.48%.

Insider Transactions at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In other McCormick & Company, Incorporated news, Director Michael D. Mangan sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.92, for a total value of $339,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 43,029 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,922,529.68. This trade represents a 10.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.63, for a total value of $3,581,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 296,992 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,273,536.96. This represents a 14.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 65,000 shares of company stock valued at $4,575,800 over the last three months. Company insiders own 10.60% of the company's stock.

About McCormick & Company, Incorporated

McCormick & Company, Incorporated NYSE: MKC is a global leader in spices, seasonings and flavor solutions. Headquartered in Hunt Valley, Maryland, the company traces its origins to the late 19th century and has grown into a major manufacturer and marketer of branded and private‑label flavor products for consumer, industrial and foodservice markets.

McCormick's product portfolio includes pure spices and herbs, blended seasonings, marinades, rubs, sauces, extracts and specialty flavorings, along with ingredient systems and custom flavor development for manufacturers and foodservice operators.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.