McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.01 EPS

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.01), Zacks reports. The firm had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.84 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 11.46% and a return on equity of 14.30%.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Down 2.0%

NYSE:MKC opened at $66.48 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.71. The firm has a market cap of $17.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.00, a P/E/G ratio of 4.07 and a beta of 0.62. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $62.64 and a fifty-two week high of $86.24. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $66.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $67.96.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 12th. Investors of record on Monday, December 29th were given a dividend of $0.48 per share. This is a positive change from McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 29th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s payout ratio is currently 66.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.43, for a total transaction of $3,371,500.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 246,762 shares in the company, valued at $16,639,161.66. This represents a 16.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Brendan M. Foley sold 57,144 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.56, for a total transaction of $3,746,360.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 108,652 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,123,225.12. The trade was a 34.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 146,158 shares of company stock worth $9,635,824. Corporate insiders own 23.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McCormick & Company, Incorporated

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 2nd quarter worth about $56,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the second quarter valued at approximately $64,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the third quarter valued at approximately $98,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 24.8% during the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,071 shares of the company’s stock valued at $157,000 after purchasing an additional 411 shares during the period. Finally, Modern Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 5.9% in the second quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,258 shares of the company’s stock worth $247,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MKC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, December 15th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $76.00 to $71.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.63.

About McCormick & Company, Incorporated

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE: MKC) is a global leader in spices, seasonings and flavor solutions. Headquartered in Hunt Valley, Maryland, the company traces its origins to the late 19th century and has grown into a major manufacturer and marketer of branded and private‑label flavor products for consumer, industrial and foodservice markets.

McCormick’s product portfolio includes pure spices and herbs, blended seasonings, marinades, rubs, sauces, extracts and specialty flavorings, along with ingredient systems and custom flavor development for manufacturers and foodservice operators.