Bucking a recent trend of publicly traded companies that are suspending dividends, McCormick (MKC +4.30%) has declared a fresh payout. The company announced Wednesday it will again dispense a quarterly dividend of $0.62 per share, for a yield of just under 1.8%. This will be paid on April 27 to stockholders of record as of April 13.
That amount matches the company's previous quarterly dividend, which was handed out in January. Prior to that, McCormick had paid $0.57 per share.
McCormick headquarters. Image source: McCormick
The spice and condiments maker might feel particularly obligated to keep its distribution alive given that it is a Dividend Aristocrat, one of the rare S&P 500 stocks that has raised its payout at least once for a minimum of 25 years running.
That $0.57-to-$0.62 per share hike, declared in November, was its 34th consecutive yearly raise. Beyond that, the company has paid a dividend consistently for 96 years.
When the raise was declared, McCormick said in a press release that "[o]ur purpose-led, forward focus on growth, performance and people continues to drive differentiated results and build shareholder value. We remain committed to our long history of returning cash to shareholders."
The latest dividend declaration comes just after the company reported its Q1 fiscal 2020 results. For the quarter, the company's net sales dipped by 2% to $1.2 billion, while adjusted net income slipped by 3% to $145 million. The former figure just missed the average analyst estimate, while the latter topped expectations.
On Wednesday, McCormick's shares fell by almost 2%, which wasn't as steep as the drops recorded by many top stocks and the leading market indexes.
