McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts rate McCormick a "Hold" — 13 analysts cover the stock (1 sell, 6 hold, 6 buy) with an average 1‑year target of $64.27, and several major firms have recently trimmed price targets into the mid‑$50s to mid‑$60s.
• Significant insider selling — major shareholder Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 50,000 shares (a 16.85% reduction of his stake) and insiders sold 115,000 shares totaling about $7.95M last quarter, leaving insiders with 10.6% ownership.
• Q‑results beat estimates — the company reported $0.66 EPS vs. $0.61 expected and $1.87B revenue vs. $1.79B expected, with revenue up 16.7% year‑over‑year and a net margin of 23.12%.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the thirteen analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $64.2727.

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $81.00 to $64.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $70.00 to $59.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 30th. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price target on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $83.00 to $75.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $67.00 to $64.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday.

Insider Buying and Selling at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In other news, major shareholder Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.43, for a total value of $3,371,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 246,762 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,639,161.66. This trade represents a 16.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael D. Mangan sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.92, for a total transaction of $339,600.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 43,029 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,922,529.68. This represents a 10.41% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 115,000 shares of company stock valued at $7,947,300 in the last quarter. 10.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MKC. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the second quarter worth $27,000. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the third quarter valued at $28,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC bought a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators grew its position in 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 buying an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Motiv8 Investments LLC purchased a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock opened at $48.71 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.71. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 52-week low of $47.52 and a 52-week high of $82.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.76. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $62.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $64.91.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.79 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 23.12% and a return on equity of 13.29%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.60 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Company Profile

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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