McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Price Target Cut to $62.00 by Analysts at Jefferies Financial Group

Key Points

• Jefferies cut McCormick’s price target from $64 to $62 while keeping a buy rating, implying about 32% upside from the current share price.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed overall: McCormick now has an average Hold rating and a consensus target price of $63.36, with several other firms also recently lowering targets or rating the stock Hold/Equal Weight.
• The company reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $0.66 versus $0.61 expected and revenue of $1.87 billion versus $1.79 billion expected, while shares traded around $46.87.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Get Free Report) had its price objective reduced by research analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from $64.00 to $62.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,MarketScreener reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group's target price points to a potential upside of 32.29% from the company's current price.

MKC has been the topic of a number of other reports. Zacks Research upgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $67.00 to $58.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price target on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $85.00 to $77.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $65.00 to $55.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $63.36.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MKC traded up $0.58 during trading on Thursday, reaching $46.87. 398,704 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,146,096. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.65. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 52-week low of $44.82 and a 52-week high of $78.16. The company has a 50-day moving average of $49.69 and a 200-day moving average of $60.10.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.79 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a return on equity of 13.29% and a net margin of 23.12%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.60 EPS. Analysts forecast that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In other McCormick & Company, Incorporated news, Director Gavin Hattersley bought 2,000 shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 10th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $52.98 per share, for a total transaction of $105,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 2,906 shares in the company, valued at $153,959.88. This represents a 220.75% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 10.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of McCormick & Company, Incorporated

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Rafferty Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 21,563 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,443,000 after buying an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Ransom Advisory Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Ransom Advisory Ltd now owns 4,625 shares of the company's stock worth $315,000 after buying an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators boosted its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 67.8% during the fourth quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 406 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 42.5% during the fourth quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC now owns 570 shares of the company's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 10.5% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,795 shares of the company's stock valued at $122,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.74% 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.

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