Heinz and McCormick

We are almost done with Consumer Foodstuffs and have just three more companies to tell you about. Our two companies today are HJ Heinz (HNZ) and McCormick (MKC). Heinz, the well known producer of ketchup, also produces and distributes other condiments and frozen meals. It's company was created in 1900 and is currently headed by CEO William Johnson. The company, since our statistics begin providing us information in the 1970s, has shown prominent growth except for 1988, when the company changed hands and name, and 1998 and 2008. Since 2008, the company has more than recuperated and now hits all time highs approaching $60. When looking in more recent terms, on September 6 the companies target stock price was projected to increase and consequently went up sixty cents. About two weeks ago, there was a decline in Campbell stocks and investing in Heinz increased. We bought some stock at $56.11, and sold (all by simulation) them at $56.34 this past Friday. This gives us a slight profit of $2.30, but we do encourage investing in the company. There's a small margin of profit and it's a good low-risk investment for amateur or casual investors.
Our other company today is McCormick (NKC). This company focuses on distributing condiments and spices and was established in 1881. The current CEO is Alan Wilson. We observed the lifetime stocks of the company starting in the 1970s, as the with Heinz, we noticed that it has very steady and a very reliable growth pattern. Shares did not have any major downturns except 2008, during which it dropped by about 10 points. We studied with more depth the fluctuations in September and found key events that changed the share price. On September 6th, McCormick reaffirmed its fiscal year earnings projected, with an expected 11%, instead of the 9% previously announced. This led to a spark in investment in the company, followed by an increase of a dollar in stock price. Three weeks later, when fiscal earnings had only improved by about 6%, nowhere near the 11% everyone expected, and the stocks fell a harsh $2 a piece. We bought stock before the drop, at $62.11, and it is now at $61.76. Although we lost some money on this transaction, we do recommend buying the stocks while they are low as we expect for McCormick's market to spike at again by the end of the month. Make sure to join us tomorrow as we finish off Consumer Foodstuffs (revisited in 2013) and start Tech month (October 16th - November 12th).