SlateStone Wealth LLC Lowers Holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

SlateStone Wealth LLC reduced its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 10.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,065 shares of the company’s stock after selling 364 shares during the period. SlateStone Wealth LLC’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $210,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt acquired a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the fourth quarter valued at $92,340,000. Impax Asset Management Group plc boosted its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 157.2% during the 4th quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 1,063,273 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,749,000 after purchasing an additional 649,908 shares during the period. Fenimore Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 369.2% in the 4th quarter. Fenimore Asset Management Inc. now owns 695,031 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,554,000 after purchasing an additional 546,911 shares in the last quarter. Scopus Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 711.3% in the 3rd quarter. Scopus Asset Management L.P. now owns 547,600 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,420,000 after purchasing an additional 480,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 183.2% in the 3rd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 641,897 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,535,000 after purchasing an additional 415,269 shares in the last quarter. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Performance

Shares of MKC traded down $0.15 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $74.87. The stock had a trading volume of 164,172 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,046,118. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $71.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $67.63. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a one year low of $59.13 and a one year high of $94.39. The firm has a market cap of $20.10 billion, a PE ratio of 28.63, a P/E/G ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 26th. The company reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $1.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.55 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 10.56% and a return on equity of 14.45%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.59 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, April 8th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 5th. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s payout ratio is 64.12%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McCormick & Company, Incorporated news, insider Katherine Jenkins sold 1,726 shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.35, for a total value of $128,328.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, insider Katherine Jenkins sold 1,726 shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.35, for a total transaction of $128,328.10. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Maritza Gomez Montiel sold 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.00, for a total transaction of $539,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 5,594 shares in the company, valued at $430,738. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 33,726 shares of company stock worth $2,504,728 in the last quarter. 22.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on MKC. Argus upgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $88.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $60.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Consumer Edge downgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $59.00 to $57.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $77.88.

About McCormick & Company, Incorporated

McCormick & Company, Incorporated manufactures, markets, and distributes spices, seasoning mixes, condiments, and other flavorful products to the food industry. It operates in two segments, Consumer and Flavor Solutions. The Consumer segment offers spices, herbs, and seasonings, as well as condiments and sauces, and desserts.