Larson Financial Group LLC Reduces Position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Larson Financial Group LLC cut its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 30.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,994 shares of the company’s stock after selling 885 shares during the quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $152,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 7.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 15,315,905 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,260,499,000 after buying an additional 1,114,706 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 0.9% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,886,987 shares of the company’s stock valued at $482,823,000 after buying an additional 54,018 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 6.3% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,003,136 shares of the company’s stock valued at $247,158,000 after purchasing an additional 177,567 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 58.2% during the third quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,544,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $127,115,000 after purchasing an additional 568,276 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,509,463 shares of the company’s stock valued at $115,081,000 after purchasing an additional 46,411 shares during the period. 79.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Margaret M. V. Preston sold 28,092 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.03, for a total transaction of $2,163,926.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 6,177 shares in the company, valued at $475,814.31. This represents a 81.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 23.80% of the company’s stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock opened at $83.29 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $77.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $78.83. The company has a market cap of $22.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.71. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $66.88 and a fifty-two week high of $86.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.74.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.03. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 11.73% and a return on equity of 14.89%. As a group, equities analysts predict that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MKC. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $85.00 to $91.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price 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. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $86.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given 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 price target of $83.75.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated 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.