McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Shares Gap Up Following Earnings Beat

Shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $67.67, but opened at $71.69. McCormick & Company, Incorporated shares last traded at $71.99, with a volume of 337,545 shares.

The company reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 return on equity of 14.45% and a net margin of 10.56%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.60 earnings per share.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 8th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 8th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s payout ratio is presently 64.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on MKC. TD Cowen lowered their target price on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $75.00 to $73.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Citigroup upgraded McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $68.00 to $69.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Barclays lifted their price target on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $71.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Argus upgraded McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $88.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. One equities 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 stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.25.

Insider Transactions at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In other news, insider Katherine Jenkins sold 1,726 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.35, for a total value of $128,328.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Katherine Jenkins sold 1,726 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.35, for a total value of $128,328.10. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Patricia A. Little sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 24,732 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,868,997.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 104,458 shares of company stock worth $7,747,114. 22.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MKC. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 64.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 108,623 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,216,000 after buying an additional 42,625 shares during the last quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. purchased a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,728,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 7,344.4% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 116,132 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,946,000 after purchasing an additional 114,572 shares during the last quarter. abrdn plc boosted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 19.1% during the 4th quarter. abrdn plc now owns 443,332 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,333,000 after purchasing an additional 71,133 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs & Co. CA boosted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. Jacobs & Co. CA now owns 142,949 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,780,000 after purchasing an additional 16,098 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Trading Up 6.4 %

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $72.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $70.14. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.32 billion, a PE ratio of 25.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.74.

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.