MCCORMICK & CO. INC. $93

MCCORMICK & CO. INC. $93 (New York symbol MKC; Income Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 115.3 million; Market cap: $10.7 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.8; Dividend yield: 1.8%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.mccormick.com) has paid $114 million for Botanical Food Co. Based in Australia, this firm makes packaged herbs under the Gourmet Garden brand. It sells these products mainly in Australia and North America. The purchase complements McCormick’s existing spice products. It will also add $53 million to its annual sales of $4.3 billion. The stock now trades at 24.9 times the $3.73 a share that the company will likely earn in its current fiscal year. That’s a high multiple in light of McCormick’s growth-by-acquisition strategy and currency risk. McCormick is still a hold.

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