McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Given New $64.00 Price Target at Jefferies Financial Group

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) had its price objective cut by Jefferies Financial Group from $81.00 to $64.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have a buy rating on the stock.

MKC has been the topic of several other research reports. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $83.00 to $75.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered 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. Barclays cut their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $67.00 to $58.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $65.00 to $55.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Zacks Research lowered McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $64.27.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Trading Down 4.5%

NYSE MKC opened at $48.18 on Wednesday. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a one year low of $48.05 and a one year high of $82.90. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $62.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $65.15. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $12.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.90, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.71.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.05. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 23.12% and a return on equity of 13.29%. The firm had revenue of $1.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.79 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.60 earnings per share. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other McCormick & Company, Incorporated news, Director Michael D. Mangan sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.92, for a total value of $339,600.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 43,029 shares in the company, valued at $2,922,529.68. The trade was a 10.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Jacques Tapiero sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.09, for a total transaction of $335,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 31,596 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,119,775.64. The trade was a 13.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 115,000 shares of company stock worth $7,947,300. 10.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of McCormick & Company, Incorporated

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the third quarter valued at about $28,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators grew its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 67.8% during the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 406 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Motiv8 Investments LLC purchased a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting McCormick & Company, Incorporated this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat and reaffirmed outlook — McCormick reported better-than-expected Q1 results (EPS $0.66 vs. $0.61 consensus) and revenue +16.7% Y/Y, and reiterated its 2026 outlook, which supports near-term fundamentals. Q1 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic upside from Unilever tie-up — management says the deal will create a ~US$65B flavor/foods company with ~$600M run-rate synergies and accretion potential, a clear long-term growth/doubling revenue thesis if the transaction closes. Deal Announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts still constructive despite cuts — a number of firms kept Buy/Overweight stances even while lowering targets (e.g., Jefferies, JPMorgan), indicating analysts see value once merger execution/risks are clarified. Jefferies PT Note JPMorgan PT Note
• Neutral Sentiment: Elevated trading & options flow — unusually high volume and a spike in call option activity signal both heavy repositioning and active speculation; this increases short-term volatility but is not a directional fundamental read.
• Neutral Sentiment: Value/deep-discount narrative — some coverage points to MKC trading at deep-value multiples versus history, which could attract long-term income investors if uncertainty subsides.
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple price-target cuts and cautious notes — several brokers trimmed targets (Barclays, Stifel, JPMorgan, Jefferies reductions cited) or moved to neutral/hold, pressuring sentiment and limiting near-term buying. Stifel PT Cut Barclays/JPMorgan Notes
• Negative Sentiment: Shareholder litigation and fairness probes — multiple law firms have launched investigations into whether the Unilever transaction is fair to McCormick shareholders, adding legal/PR risk and potential distraction. KSF Investigation Ademi Alert
• Negative Sentiment: Market skepticism on deal structure and dilution — coverage notes concerns about the cash-and-equity mix, dilution, execution risk and regulatory hurdles; that skepticism has driven near-term selling and a move toward 52?week lows. Deal Critique

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.