McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Cut to “Hold” at Argus

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) was downgraded by stock analysts at Argus from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. TD Cowen raised shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $86.00 to $90.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Barclays reduced their price objective on 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $85.00 to $91.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, McCormick & Company, Incorporated presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $83.75.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of MKC stock opened at $80.85 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $78.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $78.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.68 billion, a PE ratio of 27.59, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.71. 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 has a 1-year low of $66.88 and a 1-year high of $86.24.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 25th. The company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $1.61 billion for 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%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.63 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other McCormick & Company, Incorporated news, Director Margaret M. V. Preston sold 28,092 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company 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. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 90.5% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,879 shares of the company’s stock valued at $237,000 after acquiring an additional 1,368 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 20.4% in the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 33,120 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,726,000 after purchasing an additional 5,609 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 3.0% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 366,459 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,504,000 after purchasing an additional 10,559 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 3.7% during the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 14,253 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,173,000 after buying an additional 503 shares during the period. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 3rd quarter worth about $84,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

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.