Geode Capital Management LLC Increases Position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 5,886,987 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 54,018 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $482,823,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC purchased a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the third quarter valued at $20,227,000. Hemenway Trust Co LLC grew its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 71.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hemenway Trust Co LLC now owns 140,362 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,552,000 after buying an additional 58,511 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 57.6% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 40,077 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,298,000 after acquiring an additional 14,652 shares during the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 632,674 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,882,000 after acquiring an additional 6,588 shares during the period. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the third quarter worth approximately $2,819,000. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Michael D. Mangan sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.50, for a total value of $392,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 40,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,174,226. This represents a 11.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders sold 20,000 shares of company stock worth $1,565,850 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 22.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on MKC. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Bank of America increased their target price on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $85.00 to $91.00 in a research report on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded McCormick & Company, Incorporated to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $81.00.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MKC opened at $81.41 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $21.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.69, a PEG ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.32. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 1-year low of $63.88 and a 1-year high of $85.49. The business has a 50-day moving average of $78.36 and a 200-day moving average of $76.64.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 1st. The company reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 11.87% and a return on equity of 15.30%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s revenue for the quarter was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.65 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 2.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 30th will be given a $0.45 dividend. This is a boost from McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 30th. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.14%.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Profile

McCormick & Company, Incorporated manufactures, markets, and distributes spices, seasoning mixes, condiments, and other flavorful products to the food industry. It operates in two segments, Consumer and Flavor Solutions. The Consumer segment offers spices, herbs, and seasonings, as well as condiments and sauces, and desserts.