Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Has $6.11 Million Stock Position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated $MKC

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. lowered its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 21.6% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 80,534 shares of the company’s stock after selling 22,134 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc.’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $6,106,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 1.7% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 32,427,901 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,458,683,000 after purchasing an additional 553,862 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,375,983 shares of the company’s stock worth $481,354,000 after buying an additional 133,800 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 28.6% during the first quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,135,648 shares of the company’s stock worth $340,406,000 after buying an additional 920,618 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 44.9% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,737,793 shares of the company’s stock worth $283,399,000 after buying an additional 1,158,423 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the second quarter valued at approximately $249,087,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on MKC. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $82.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $84.00 to $78.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 11th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $87.00 price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in a research note on Thursday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $78.00.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Performance

MKC stock opened at $68.50 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $65.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $69.21. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market cap of $18.38 billion, a PE ratio of 23.70, a P/E/G ratio of 4.63 and a beta of 0.62. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 1-year low of $62.64 and a 1-year high of $86.24.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 7th. The company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a return on equity of 14.30% and a net margin of 11.46%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.83 earnings per share. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.000-3.050 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This is an increase from McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 29th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio is 62.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Brendan M. Foley sold 57,144 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.56, for a total transaction of $3,746,360.64. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 108,652 shares in the company, valued at $7,123,225.12. This trade represents a 34.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.86, for a total transaction of $3,293,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 246,762 shares in the company, valued at $16,251,745.32. This represents a 16.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 146,158 shares of company stock worth $9,557,324. Insiders own 23.80% of the company’s stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Company Profile

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.