McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $85.59 and last traded at $85.41, with a volume of 76484 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $84.73.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on MKC. TD Cowen upgraded McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $86.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $85.00 to $91.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $83.75.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Price Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $76.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $78.65. The company has a market cap of $22.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.18, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.75. 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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.03. McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 11.73%. On average, analysts predict that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other McCormick & Company, Incorporated news, Director Margaret M. V. Preston sold 28,092 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.03, for a total value of $2,163,926.76. Following the sale, the director now owns 6,177 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $475,814.31. This trade represents a 81.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 23.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McCormick & Company, Incorporated

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 31,737,310 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,419,653,000 after acquiring an additional 303,973 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in 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 purchasing an additional 1,114,706 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,024,666 shares of the company’s stock worth $458,114,000 after purchasing an additional 137,679 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,693,239 shares of the company’s stock worth $281,573,000 after purchasing an additional 531,060 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 3,530,972 shares of the company’s stock worth $269,060,000 after purchasing an additional 326,041 shares in the last quarter. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About McCormick & Company, Incorporated

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.