First Manhattan CO. LLC. Lowers Stock Holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

First Manhattan CO. LLC. cut its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 26.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 55,035 shares of the company’s stock after selling 19,578 shares during the quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC.’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $4,221,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MKC. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Twin Tree Management LP bought a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton bought a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MKC has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. 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 report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Argus cut shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.14.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Performance

MKC opened at $76.10 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 12-month low of $66.88 and a 12-month high of $86.24. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $78.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $77.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.41 billion, a PE ratio of 25.97, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.74.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 25th. The company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.61 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 11.73% and a return on equity of 14.89%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.63 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 7th were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 7th. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.86%.

Insider Buying and Selling at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In other McCormick & Company, Incorporated news, VP Gregory Repas sold 2,750 shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.42, for a total value of $223,905.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,266 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $184,497.72. The trade was a 54.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Margaret M. V. Preston sold 28,092 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $475,814.31. The trade was a 81.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 80,842 shares of company stock valued at $6,478,332. 23.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.