What's Cooking for McCormick Stock Ahead of Q3 Earnings Release?

McCormick & Company, Incorporated MKC is likely to witness top-line growth when it reports third-quarter 2025 earnings on Oct. 7. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenues is pegged at $1.71 billion, indicating a 2.1% increase from the prior-year quarter’s reported figure. 

The consensus mark for earnings has declined by a penny in the past 30 days to 81 cents per share, which suggests a 2.4% decrease from the figure reported in the year-ago quarter. MKC has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 6.5%, on average.

MKC: Key Factors to Watch

McCormick has been benefiting from strong consumer demand across its core categories of spices, seasonings, sauces and condiments. Momentum in the Consumer segment has been supported by innovation, elevated brand marketing investments and expanding distribution across key markets. The company’s emphasis on health-conscious and flavor-driven cooking continues to resonate with households preparing more meals at home. New product rollouts and packaging initiatives have been strengthening brand engagement and driving category share gains.

However, in its Flavor Solutions segment, McCormick may have continued to experience softness related to sluggish volumes among its large CPG customers. The segment has also faced challenges from muted demand in certain quick-service restaurant (QSR) channels, particularly in the EMEA, where traffic has been impacted by geopolitical tensions and consumer footfall softness. 

Overall, consumer behavior in major markets such as North America remains mixed, with ongoing value-seeking tendencies leading shoppers to trade down or purchase in smaller quantities. While McCormick’s strong brand equity, pricing discipline and diversified portfolio have helped sustain resilience, these cautious spending patterns may have limited pricing power and pressured margins.

McCormick has also been navigating elevated commodity costs and tariff-related costs. Despite proactive mitigation efforts, including sourcing diversification and productivity savings under its Comprehensive Continuous Improvement program, these measures may not have fully offset the inflationary impact on the cost of goods sold. These challenges, along with volatile foreign currency movements, remain a concern for the quarter under review.

Earnings Whispers for MKC Stock

Our proven model doesn’t conclusively predict an earnings beat for McCormick this time. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat, which is not the case here. 

McCormick carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) and has an Earnings ESP of -1.70%. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Stocks With the Favorable Combination

Here are some companies worth considering, as our model shows that these have the right combination of elements to beat on earnings this reporting cycle.

The Hershey Company HSY currently has an Earnings ESP of +1.61% and a Zacks Rank of 3. The company is likely to register a jump in the top line when it reports third-quarter 2025 numbers. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Hershey’s quarterly revenues is pegged at $3.11 billion, which suggests an increase of 4.1% from the prior-year quarter. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

However, Hershey’s bottom line is estimated to decline year over year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for quarterly earnings per share stands at $1.06, suggesting a 54.7% decrease from the year-ago period. HSY has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 8.5%, on average.

Kraft Heinz Company KHC currently has an Earnings ESP of +0.44% and a Zacks Rank of 3. The company is likely to register a top and bottom-line decrease when it reports third-quarter 2025 numbers. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Kraft Heinz’s quarterly revenues is pegged at $6.27 billion, which suggests a drop of 1.7% from the prior-year quarter.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Kraft Heinz’s quarterly earnings per share is pegged at 58 cents, indicating a 22.7% plunge from the year-ago period. KHC has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 5.1%, on average.

Kimberly-Clark Corporation KMB currently has an Earnings ESP of +1.37% and a Zacks Rank of 3. The company is likely to register top and bottom-line declines when it reports third-quarter 2025 numbers. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Kimberly-Clark’s quarterly revenues is pegged at $4.11 billion, which suggests a 17.1% decrease from the prior-year quarter. 

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Kimberly-Clark’s quarterly earnings per share is pegged at $1.63, indicating a 10.9% fall from the year-ago period figure. KMB has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 6.2%, on average.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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