Will McCormick & Company, Incorporated (MKC) Benefit from Increased Demand?

Investment management company Ave Maria recently released its “Ave Maria Growth Fund” first quarter 2024 investor letter.  A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. The fund's total return in the first quarter was 9.17% compared to the 10.56% return for the S&P 500 Index. Since its inception on May 1, 2003, the fund's annualized return is 11.65% compared to the index’s annualized return of 10.86%. You can check the top 5 holdings of the fund to know its best picks in 2024.

Ave Maria Growth Fund highlighted stocks like McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC), in the first quarter 2024 investor letter. McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) manufactures, markets, and distributes spices, seasoning mixes, condiments, and other flavorful products to the food industry. The one-month return of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) was -9.94%, and its shares lost 24.36% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On June 7, 2024, McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) stock closed at $68.58 per share with a market capitalization of $18.423 billion.

Ave Maria Growth Fund stated the following regarding McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) in its first quarter 2024 investor letter:

"McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) manufactures and distributes spices and other flavor products to the food industry. This seemingly mundane business achieves extraordinary returns on capital as the spices and seasoning category tends toward a single dominant supplier which can simplify the complex inventory requirements of its customers. Over the coming years, McCormick should benefit from increasing demand for diverse cuisines, the trend towards cooking from scratch, and the younger consumers’ preference for heat via its Cholula hot sauce products."

A close-up of spices, herbs and seasoning mixes in a colorful array, highlighting the company's range of products.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) is not on our list of 31 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 27 hedge fund portfolios held McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) at the end of the first quarter which was 38 in the previous quarter. McCormick & Company, Incorporated’s (MKC) revenue grew by 2% in constant currency this quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is as promising as NVIDIA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

In another article, we discussed McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) and shared the list of best beverage dividend stocks to buy. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q1 2024 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.