McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Stock Price Up 5% – Still a Buy?

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)’s stock price rose 5% on Thursday. The stock traded as high as $48.71 and last traded at $48.6350. 4,670,773 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 16% from the average daily volume of 4,009,954 shares. The stock had previously closed at $46.32.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MKC. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating and set a $48.00 target price (down from $55.00) on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $55.00 to $48.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Weiss Ratings cut McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $59.00 price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $63.00 to $62.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 18th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, McCormick & Company, Incorporated presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.30.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $12.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.65. The business has a fifty day moving average of $49.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $50.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.66.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 1st. The company reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $2.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.98 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 19.39% and a return on equity of 12.01%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s quarterly revenue was up 17.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.85 EPS. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.050-3.130 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 13th will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 13th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McCormick & Company, Incorporated news, major shareholder Lawrence Kurzius sold 205,538 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.69, for a total transaction of $10,829,797.22. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 296,992 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,648,508.48. The trade was a 40.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 10.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McCormick & Company, Incorporated

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 8,130 shares of the company’s stock valued at $369,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Dorato Capital Management lifted its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Dorato Capital Management now owns 4,588 shares of the company’s stock valued at $208,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the period. CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 16.4% during the third quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,738 shares of the company’s stock worth $81,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 3.6% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 8,302 shares of the company’s stock worth $419,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empirical Finance LLC boosted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 3.4% during the second quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 8,886 shares of the company’s stock worth $448,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Company Profile

McCormick & Company, Incorporated is a global manufacturer and marketer of spices, seasonings, condiments, sauces, and other flavor products. The company serves consumers through grocery, e-commerce, and foodservice channels, while also supplying flavor solutions to food manufacturers and other commercial customers.

Its consumer portfolio includes McCormick spices and seasonings, as well as brands such as French’s, Frank’s RedHot, Lawry’s, OLD BAY, and Gourmet Garden. Its products are used in home cooking, restaurants, and packaged foods across a range of cuisines and meal occasions.

Founded by Willoughby M.