McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $86.16 and last traded at $85.53, with a volume of 1006259 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $82.62.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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 report on Monday, December 9th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $86.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased 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 reduced 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 research note on Monday, January 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, McCormick & Company, Incorporated has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $83.75.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Price Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $77.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $78.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.72, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.71.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.03. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 11.73% and a return on equity of 14.89%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In other news, Director Margaret M. V. Preston sold 28,092 shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.03, for a total transaction of $2,163,926.76. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,177 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $475,814.31. This trade represents a 81.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 23.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McCormick & Company, Incorporated

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MKC. Hemenway Trust Co LLC boosted its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 71.5% during the third quarter. Hemenway Trust Co LLC now owns 140,362 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,552,000 after purchasing an additional 58,511 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 21.7% during the 3rd 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. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 57.6% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 40,077 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,298,000 after purchasing an additional 14,652 shares during the period. DJE Kapital AG acquired a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,228,000. Finally, Qsemble Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,104,000. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About McCormick & Company, Incorporated

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.