Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Buys 28,736 Shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Free Report) by 146.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 48,298 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 28,736 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.'s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $3,682,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC bought a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $20,227,000. Hemenway Trust Co LLC grew its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 71.5% in the third quarter. Hemenway Trust Co LLC now owns 140,362 shares of the company's stock worth $11,552,000 after acquiring an additional 58,511 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 57.6% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 40,077 shares of the company's stock worth $3,298,000 after acquiring an additional 14,652 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Qsemble Capital Management LP bought a new stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,104,000. 79.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MKC. TD Cowen raised shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $86.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. BNP Paribas raised McCormick & Company, Incorporated to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $85.00 to $91.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Bank of America raised their target price on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $82.63.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Price Performance

Shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock traded down $1.06 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $73.19. 2,035,596 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,005,369. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $64.33 and a fifty-two week high of $85.49. The company has a market cap of $19.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.75. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $76.70 and a 200 day simple moving average of $78.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 30th were paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 30th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.46%. This is a boost from McCormick & Company, Incorporated's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. McCormick & Company, Incorporated's payout ratio is 61.22%.

Insider Transactions at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In other news, Director Jacques Tapiero sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.34, for a total transaction of $386,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 28,217 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,182,302.78. This represents a 15.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders have sold 20,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,565,850 in the last three months. 22.90% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.