McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Stock Price Up 1.6% – Time to Buy?

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)’s stock price rose 1.6% during trading on Thursday. The company traded as high as $46.87 and last traded at $46.7980. 2,350,742 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 41% from the average session volume of 3,985,240 shares. The stock had previously closed at $46.06.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MKC. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $59.00 price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in a report on Friday, October 2nd. UBS Group cut their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $52.00 to $48.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $55.00 to $48.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $48.00 price objective (down from $55.00) on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $60.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 21st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.30.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Up 1.6%

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $49.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $53.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm has a market cap of $12.59 billion, a PE ratio of 8.46, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.65.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 1st. The company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.10. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 19.39%. The firm had revenue of $2.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.98 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.85 EPS. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s revenue was up 17.4% on a year-over-year basis. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.050-3.130 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 13th were given a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 13th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.72%.

Insider Activity at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In other news, major shareholder Lawrence Kurzius sold 205,538 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.69, for a total value of $10,829,797.22. Following the transaction, the insider owned 296,992 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,648,508.48. This trade represents a 40.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 10.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Aristotle Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 231.9% during the first quarter. Aristotle Capital Management LLC now owns 12,664,378 shares of the company’s stock valued at $638,795,000 after buying an additional 8,848,235 shares during the last quarter. XXEC Inc. purchased a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $154,566,000. Amundi increased its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 72.5% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 2,023,544 shares of the company’s stock worth $102,068,000 after acquiring an additional 850,343 shares during the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. increased its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 330.3% in the 1st quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 694,914 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,051,000 after acquiring an additional 533,437 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 86.5% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 809,720 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,842,000 after acquiring an additional 375,471 shares during the last quarter. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.