Welch & Forbes LLC Purchases 5,338 Shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Welch & Forbes LLC grew its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 43.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 17,511 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 5,338 shares during the quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $1,198,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MKC. Anchor Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. raised its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 283.9% during the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 787 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 582 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 59.1% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 781 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 290 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its stake in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 72.9% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,093 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 461 shares during the last quarter. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on MKC shares. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $59.00 to $57.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Citigroup boosted their price target on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $60.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Consumer Edge lowered McCormick & Company, Incorporated from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. Finally, Barclays lifted 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 note on Thursday, March 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $77.88.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Patricia A. Little sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.57, for a total transaction of $1,511,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 24,732 shares in the company, valued at $1,868,997.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Patricia A. Little sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 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. Also, insider Katherine Jenkins sold 1,726 shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock in a transaction on Monday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.35, for a total transaction of $128,328.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 33,726 shares of company stock worth $2,504,728 over the last quarter. Insiders own 22.90% of the company’s stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MKC traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $76.04. The company had a trading volume of 308,860 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,011,323. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 12-month low of $59.13 and a 12-month high of $94.39. The company has a fifty day moving average of $72.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $68.64. The company has a market cap of $20.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.08, a PEG ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.30.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last announced 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 firm 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.59 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 8th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 5th. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.12%.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Company Profile

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.