Cetera Investment Advisers Cuts Holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Cetera Investment Advisers trimmed its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 8.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 33,243 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,005 shares during the quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers’ holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $2,736,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MKC. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 151,523 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,552,000 after buying an additional 11,795 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 602,986 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,972,000 after buying an additional 11,563 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 17.6% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,641,812 shares of the company’s stock worth $201,412,000 after buying an additional 396,214 shares during the period. FIL Ltd lifted its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 1,170,586 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,245,000 after buying an additional 101,078 shares during the period. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. lifted its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 22.7% during the fourth quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 164,655 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,123,000 after buying an additional 30,418 shares during the period. 79.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Down 0.4%

MKC stock opened at $69.49 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.66. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $73.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $75.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 52 week low of $69.27 and a 52 week high of $86.24.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 26th. The company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.04. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 11.50% and a return on equity of 14.43%. The company had revenue of $1.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.69 EPS. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 21st. Investors of record on Monday, July 7th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 7th. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $82.00 to $76.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in a research report on Monday, June 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $83.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 5th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $80.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $83.00.

Insider Transactions at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In related news, insider Katherine Jenkins sold 7,642 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.38, for a total transaction of $583,695.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 23.80% of the company’s stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Company Profile

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.