Covea Finance Acquires $31.74 Million Stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated

Covea Finance has made a significant investment in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) by acquiring a new position during the third quarter of the year. This acquisition was documented in the firm’s latest 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The investment involved the purchase of 385,660 shares of McCormick's stock, which is valued at approximately $31,740,000. This position represents about 1.4% of Covea Finance's total investment portfolio, positioning McCormick as the firm’s 24th largest investment. As of the end of the most recent quarter, Covea Finance owned 0.14% of the company.

Institutional Investment Trends

Other institutional investors have also shown interest in McCormick & Company, modifying their stakes in the company. For example, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC increased its holdings by 87.5% in the second quarter, now owning 375 shares valued at $27,000. Similarly, OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake worth about $29,000. Other firms, like 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. and Strategic Investment Solutions Inc., also made new purchases during this period. In total, institutional investors control approximately 79.74% of McCormick’s stock.

Insider Trading Activity

In a separate development, Director Lawrence Erik Kurzius sold 25,000 shares of McCormick stock on July 17 for an average price of $75.00, amounting to $1,875,000. Following this transaction, the director retains 199,258 shares valued at roughly $14,944,350. This sale represented a negligible decrease in Kurzius's holdings. Insiders currently hold about 22.90% of the company's stock, according to recent filings.

Stock Performance Overview

During midday trading on a recent Friday, McCormick's stock was up by $0.40, reaching $80.18 per share. The trading volume that day was about 1,550,375 shares, compared to an average volume of 1,941,787 shares. Over the past year, McCormick shares have experienced a low of $59.13 and a high of $85.49. Financial metrics indicate the company's debt-to-equity ratio stands at 0.61, with a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.32. McCormick currently has a market cap of $21.54 billion, a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 29.26, a price/earnings to growth (PEG) ratio of 3.66, and a beta of 0.77. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $80.66, while the 200-day moving average is $75.68.

Earnings Results and Dividend Announcements

On October 1, McCormick released its quarterly earnings report, announcing earnings of $0.83 per share, surpassing analysts' expectations of $0.68. Revenue for the quarter reached $1.68 billion, slightly above the anticipated $1.67 billion. Nevertheless, this reflects a year-on-year revenue decline of 0.3%. Analysts forecast that McCormick will achieve an earnings per share (EPS) of 2.92 for the current year.

Furthermore, McCormick has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42, scheduled for payment on October 21. Investors on record as of October 7 will be eligible for this dividend, representing an annualized dividend of $1.68 and a yield of 2.10%. The company's current dividend payout ratio is 61.31%.

Analyst Ratings and Future Projections

Analysts have been active in assessing McCormick’s stock, with several recent reports issuing various price targets. Stifel Nicolaus raised its target from $75.00 to $85.00 and maintained a "hold" rating. Meanwhile, Bank of America set a new target of $96.00 and maintained a "buy" rating. TD Cowen also increased its target to $86.00, suggesting a hold rating. BNP Paribas upgraded its rating to "strong buy." Currently, the consensus indicates one sell rating, five hold ratings, two buy ratings, and one strong buy rating, leading to an average rating of "hold" and a target price of $79.57.

Company Overview

McCormick & Company, Incorporated specializes in producing, marketing, and distributing spices, seasoning mixes, condiments, and various flavor products tailored for the food industry. The company operates through two main segments: Consumer and Flavor Solutions. The Consumer segment focuses on spices, herbs, condiments, and sauces, alongside dessert products.

Investment, Stocks, Finance