Nomura Holdings Inc. Grows Stock Position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Nomura Holdings Inc. increased its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by 59.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 20,858 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,788 shares during the quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc.’s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $1,590,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MKC. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 146.9% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 48,298 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,682,000 after purchasing an additional 28,736 shares in the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,652 shares of the company’s stock valued at $583,000 after purchasing an additional 851 shares in the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management grew its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 19,785 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,508,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares in the last quarter. Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated in the fourth quarter valued at $1,893,000. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 19.1% in the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 9,772 shares of the company’s stock valued at $745,000 after purchasing an additional 1,569 shares in the last quarter. 79.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at McCormick & Company, Incorporated

In other news, insider Katherine Jenkins sold 7,642 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.38, for a total value of $583,695.96. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.81, for a total value of $4,090,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 247,437 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,242,820.97. This trade represents a 16.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 60,392 shares of company stock valued at $4,898,101. Corporate insiders own 23.80% of the company’s stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Performance

McCormick & Company, Incorporated stock opened at $75.50 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $77.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $77.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.74. The stock has a market cap of $20.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.74. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $66.88 and a fifty-two week high of $86.24.

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

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 7th were issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 7th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.38%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s dividend payout ratio is 61.86%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MKC has been the subject of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target 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. Barclays reduced their target price on 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. Finally, Argus cut McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, McCormick & Company, Incorporated presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.14.

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.