West Oak Capital LLC Sells 2,662 Shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

West Oak Capital LLC lowered its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 45.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,200 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,662 shares during the quarter. West Oak Capital LLC’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $212,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Union Savings Bank acquired a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the second quarter worth $27,000. Legacy Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the 1st quarter worth $44,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the 4th quarter worth $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on 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. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $60.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Consumer Edge downgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $71.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, McCormick & Company, Incorporated has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.25.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Price Performance

Shares of MKC stock traded up $0.76 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $76.79. The company had a trading volume of 595,524 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,135,077. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 12 month low of $59.13 and a 12 month high of $94.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.68. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $67.73 and its 200 day moving average is $67.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.02, a PEG ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.73.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 26th. The company reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 return on equity of 14.45% and a net margin of 10.56%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.59 EPS. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 2.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 22nd. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 2.19%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s payout ratio is presently 64.12%.

Insider Activity at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In other McCormick & Company, Incorporated news, Director Michael D. Mangan sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.20, for a total value of $326,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 39,181 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,554,601.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 22.90% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.