Flputnam Investment Management Co. Sells 393 Shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Flputnam Investment Management Co. decreased its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 6.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,734 shares of the company’s stock after selling 393 shares during the quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co.’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $392,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SVB Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 3.0% during the first quarter. SVB Wealth LLC now owns 3,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $393,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 53,866 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,482,000 after buying an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Kinneret Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Kinneret Advisory LLC now owns 6,880 shares of the company’s stock worth $687,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. PFG Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 6,981 shares of the company’s stock valued at $478,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 29.8% during the first quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 811 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In related news, Director Patricia A. Little sold 20,000 shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.57, for a total transaction of $1,511,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 24,732 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,868,997.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, Director Patricia A. Little sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.57, for a total value of $1,511,400.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 24,732 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,868,997.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Michael D. Mangan sold 5,000 shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.20, for a total transaction of $326,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 39,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,554,601.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 32,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,376,400. 22.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MKC opened at $72.70 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.68. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $59.13 and a fifty-two week high of $94.39. The stock has a market cap of $19.51 billion, a PE ratio of 27.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 0.74. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $70.45 and a 200-day moving average of $67.51.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 26th. The company reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.05. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a return on equity of 14.45% and a net margin of 10.56%. The business had revenue of $1.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.55 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.59 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 8th will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 5th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $59.00 to $57.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Consumer Edge lowered shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $60.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, Argus raised McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $88.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $77.88.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Company 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.