Certior Financial Group LLC Makes New Investment in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Certior Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 3,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $239,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 21.7% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 139,728 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,500,000 after purchasing an additional 24,881 shares during the last quarter. DJE Kapital AG acquired a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the fourth quarter worth $4,228,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 4th quarter valued at about $234,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 16.6% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 136,891 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,547,000 after buying an additional 19,491 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DAVENPORT & Co LLC boosted its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 16.4% during the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 87,870 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,699,000 after acquiring an additional 12,356 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MKC. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $85.00 to $91.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $86.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Argus lowered McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, McCormick & Company, Incorporated currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.14.

Insider Buying and Selling at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In related news, VP Gregory Repas sold 2,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.42, for a total transaction of $223,905.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,266 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $184,497.72. This trade represents a 54.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.81, for a total value of $4,090,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 247,437 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,242,820.97. This represents a 16.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 80,842 shares of company stock worth $6,478,332. 23.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Down 5.5 %

MKC stock opened at $76.36 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $79.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $78.69. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a twelve month low of $66.88 and a twelve month high of $86.24. The company has a market cap of $20.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.06, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.75.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 25th. The company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.64 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.61 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 11.73%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.63 EPS. Analysts anticipate that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.36%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s payout ratio is currently 61.86%.

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.