Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC Invests $649,000 in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 9,473 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $649,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MKC. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 15.9% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 5,072 shares of the company’s stock worth $506,000 after purchasing an additional 696 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. increased its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 28.1% in the 1st quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 6,448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $627,000 after acquiring an additional 1,415 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 108,139 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,803,000 after acquiring an additional 1,048 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC bought a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 1st quarter valued at $543,000. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 1st quarter valued at $313,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MKC traded up $1.22 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $73.92. The company had a trading volume of 1,726,874 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,191,178. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $70.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $67.51. 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 stock has a market cap of $19.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.21, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.74. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 52-week low of $59.13 and a 52-week high of $94.39.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 26th. The company reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.55 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 10.56% and a return on equity of 14.45%. The company’s revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.59 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 5th. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on MKC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $59.00 to $57.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $60.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Consumer Edge lowered shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $88.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, McCormick & Company, Incorporated has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $77.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In other McCormick & Company, Incorporated news, Director Patricia A. Little sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.57, for a total transaction of $1,511,400.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 24,732 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,868,997.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Patricia A. Little sold 20,000 shares of the 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 sale, the director now directly owns 24,732 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,868,997.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Michael D. Mangan sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.20, for a total transaction of $326,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 39,181 shares in the company, valued at $2,554,601.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 32,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,376,400 over the last three months. 22.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About McCormick & Company, Incorporated

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.