Topic: How To Invest

Wall Street Stock Forecaster Hotline Friday, November 27, 2020

Article Excerpt

MCCORMICK & CO. INC., $186.48, New York symbol MKC, is still a hold. The company makes spices, seasonings and flavours. McCormick will now raise your quarterly dividend by 9.7%. Starting with the January 2021 payment, investors will receive $0.68 a share instead of $0.62. The new annual rate of $2.72 yields 1.5%. (Note—per-share amounts do not reflect the company’s plan to split its outstanding shares on a 2-for-1 basis on December 1, 2020.) This spice and seasonings giant is also buying the parent company of Cholula Hot Sauce for $800 million. It expects to complete the transaction by the end of 2020. The purchase should add $96 million to McCormick’s annual sales of $5.5 billion. The company has a long history of using acquisitions to fuel its growth, which adds risk. Moreover, COVID-19 lockdowns of restaurants could also hurt the stock. Those businesses, along with food manufacturers, supply around 40% of the company’s total sales. McCormick is a hold. McCormick recent coverage: November 2020 issue …