Virtu Financial LLC Buys 667 Shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Virtu Financial LLC increased its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 9.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 7,566 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 667 shares during the quarter. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $577,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 7.8% in the 3rd 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 during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 0.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,886,987 shares of the company’s stock worth $482,823,000 after buying an additional 54,018 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake 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 buying an additional 177,567 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew 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 worth $127,115,000 after buying an additional 568,276 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,509,463 shares of the company’s stock valued at $115,081,000 after acquiring an additional 46,411 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.74% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on MKC shares. TD Cowen raised shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $86.00 to $90.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays dropped their price target on McCormick & Company, Incorporated from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on 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, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $85.00 to $91.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $83.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Margaret M. V. Preston sold 28,092 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 23.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Price Performance

Shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock opened at $80.39 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.31. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a one year low of $66.88 and a one year high of $86.24. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $78.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $78.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.71.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 25th. The company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by ($0.04). McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a net margin of 11.73% and a return on equity of 14.89%. The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.61 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.63 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

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.