McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Price Target Raised to $69.00

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) had its price target raised by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $66.00 to $69.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an underweight rating on the stock.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on MKC. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $85.00 to $91.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. TD Cowen raised shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $86.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Bank of America raised their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, BNP Paribas raised 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, three have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $83.00.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of MKC stock opened at $74.90 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.71. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $64.33 and a fifty-two week high of $85.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $76.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $78.05.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.03. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 11.87% and a return on equity of 15.30%. Equities research analysts predict that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 2.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Investors of record on Monday, December 30th were issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.40%. This is a boost from McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 30th. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.22%.

Insider Activity

In other McCormick & Company, Incorporated news, Director Michael D. Mangan sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.50, for a total transaction of $392,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 40,436 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,174,226. This trade represents a 11.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 20,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,565,850 over the last three months. Insiders own 22.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of McCormick & Company, Incorporated

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton bought a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the second quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the third quarter worth $40,000. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About McCormick & Company, Incorporated

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.