McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Shares Gap Up After Earnings Beat

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Get Free Report) shares gapped up prior to trading on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $73.64, but opened at $77.00. McCormick & Company, Incorporated shares last traded at $76.90, with a volume of 729,147 shares.

The company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.04. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 11.67% and a return on equity of 14.63%. The firm had revenue of $1.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.69 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 7th will be given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 7th. McCormick & Company, Incorporated's payout ratio is 61.86%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MKC. UBS Group initiated coverage on McCormick & Company, Incorporated in a research note on Monday, June 16th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $83.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup cut their price objective on 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. Finally, Argus downgraded McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $84.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In other news, Director Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.81, for a total value of $4,090,500.00. Following the sale, the director now 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Gregory Repas sold 2,750 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.42, for a total transaction of $223,905.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,266 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $184,497.72. This trade represents a 54.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 60,392 shares of company stock worth $4,898,101 over the last ninety days. 23.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McCormick & Company, Incorporated

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the 4th quarter valued at about $223,202,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 1,360.5% in the first quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,575,104 shares of the company's stock worth $129,647,000 after buying an additional 1,467,254 shares in the last quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. bought a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $104,863,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 28.6% during the first quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,135,648 shares of the company's stock valued at $340,406,000 after acquiring an additional 920,618 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 47.5% during 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 acquiring an additional 915,807 shares in the last quarter. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Up 5.0%

The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The firm has a market cap of $20.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.68. The stock's fifty day moving average is $74.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $76.75.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Company 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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