Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Has $2.83 Million Stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership decreased its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Free Report) by 65.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 37,091 shares of the company's stock after selling 69,208 shares during the quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership's holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $2,828,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 21.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 139,728 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,500,000 after purchasing an additional 24,881 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC bought a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the third quarter valued at approximately $502,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 14.6% in the third quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,631 shares of the company's stock valued at $463,000 after buying an additional 716 shares in the last quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 12.0% in the third quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,165 shares of the company's stock valued at $343,000 after buying an additional 445 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 84.7% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 128,800 shares of the company's stock worth $10,600,000 after acquiring an additional 59,065 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.74% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Argus lowered McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Barclays decreased their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, TD Cowen raised McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $86.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $83.14.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Down 0.9 %

MKC stock traded down $0.69 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $76.91. The company had a trading volume of 159,779 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,316,733. The company has a market capitalization of $20.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.25, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.75. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 52 week low of $66.88 and a 52 week high of $86.24. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $79.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $78.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.31.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 25th. The company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.64 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.61 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 11.73% and a return on equity of 14.89%. The company's quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.63 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.34%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated's dividend payout ratio is presently 61.86%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Margaret M. V. Preston sold 28,092 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.03, for a total transaction of $2,163,926.76. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,177 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $475,814.31. The trade was a 81.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.81, for a total value of $4,090,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 247,437 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,242,820.97. This trade represents a 16.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 80,842 shares of company stock valued at $6,478,332. 23.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.