McCormick & Co. (MKC - Free Report) is a global leader in spices, seasonings, specialty foods and flavors. The company has a strong brand portfolio and owns more than 250 brands that are sold in the U.S. and in international markets.

McCormick’s strong portfolio and leading brands are consistently helping it to achieve strong growth. McCormick has been witnessing rising demand for spices, herbs and seasonings over the last few years. Further, its focus on building sales through brand marketing investments and acquisitions have been driving earnings.

McCormick has also been regularly launching new products in order to remain competitive. Its increasing focus on higher pricing and cost savings and enhancing productivity through its ongoing initiative, the Comprehensive Continuous Improvement (‘CCI’) program is also encouraging. However, sluggishness due to weak demand from quick service restaurants remains a concern. Due to this, investors are eagerly awaiting McCormick’s earnings report.

Investors should also note that the recent earnings estimate revisions for MKC are stable and remain unchanged over the past 30 days period. Interestingly, MKC has a positive history in earnings season, as MKC has delivered positive surprise in three of the last four quarters, making for an average surprise of 1.79%.

Currently, MKC has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), but that could definitely change following McCormick’s earnings report which was just released. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 (Strong Buy) Rank stocks here.

We have highlighted some of the key stats from this just-revealed announcement below:

Earnings: MKC’s earnings of $1.03 per share beat our consensus of 95 cents per share by 8 cents. Investors should note that these figures take out stock option expenses.

Revenue: MKC posted revenues of $1.091 billion, which marginally beat our consensus estimate of $1.088 billion.

Key Stats to Note: McCormick’s sales grew 6% on a constant currency basis, driven by acquisition benefits and product innovation and expanded distribution.

Stock Price: Shares declined 0.40% in pre-market trading.