BNP Paribas Financial Markets Raises Stock Holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Free Report) by 7.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 527,230 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 37,299 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned approximately 0.20% of McCormick & Company, Incorporated worth $40,196,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MKC. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 31,737,310 shares of the company's stock worth $2,419,653,000 after purchasing an additional 303,973 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,024,666 shares of the company's stock worth $458,114,000 after purchasing an additional 137,679 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,693,239 shares of the company's stock valued at $281,573,000 after purchasing an additional 531,060 shares in the last quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC lifted its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 10.2% during the fourth quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 3,530,972 shares of the company's stock valued at $269,060,000 after purchasing an additional 326,041 shares during the period. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,215,030 shares of the company's stock valued at $245,114,000 after acquiring an additional 190,856 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.74% of the company's stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MKC traded down $0.12 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $76.10. 1,490,324 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,974,140. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a twelve month low of $66.88 and a twelve month high of $86.24. The firm has a market cap of $20.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.97, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.74. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $78.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $77.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.31.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 25th. The company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.64 by ($0.04). McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 11.73% and a return on equity of 14.89%. The business had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.61 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.63 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 7th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.37%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated's dividend payout ratio is 61.86%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on MKC shares. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Argus cut shares of 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, four have issued a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $83.14.

Insider Buying and Selling at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In related news, Director Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.81, for a total transaction of $4,090,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 247,437 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,242,820.97. This trade represents 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 business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.42, for a total value of $223,905.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,266 shares of the company's stock, valued at $184,497.72. The trade was a 54.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 80,842 shares of company stock worth $6,478,332 over the last ninety days. 23.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.