Entropy Technologies LP Has $3.80 Million Holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Entropy Technologies LP boosted its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 146.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 49,500 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 29,416 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $3,802,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 59.1% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 781 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares in the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. grew its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 283.9% during the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 787 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 582 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 16.5% during the 1st quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 944 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. 79.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on MKC. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $75.00 to $73.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Barclays upped their target price on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $71.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Argus raised McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $88.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $68.00 to $69.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $76.25.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE MKC traded up $1.13 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $74.45. The stock had a trading volume of 2,928,894 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,012,541. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $71.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $70.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.69. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a twelve month low of $59.13 and a twelve month high of $90.45. The firm has a market cap of $20.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.75.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, June 27th. The company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $1.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.63 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 11.07% and a return on equity of 14.63%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.60 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, July 8th will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 8th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s payout ratio is 61.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total transaction of $1,875,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 199,258 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,944,350. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total value of $1,875,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 199,258 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,944,350. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Katherine Jenkins sold 1,726 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.35, for a total value of $128,328.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 109,458 shares of company stock valued at $8,110,714 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 22.90% of the company’s stock.

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.