TD Cowen upgrades McCormick and Coca-Cola, downgrades J M Smucker and WK Kellogg

WK Kellogg Co

08/01/2025 13:18

** Brokerage TD Cowen upgrades ratings on cos to "buy" from
"hold" on U.S. packaged foods companies McCormick  MKC.N  and
Coca-Cola  KO.N 
    ** TD Cowen see signs of sequential volume growth for MKC,
as well marketing execution improvement; raises PT to $90 from
$86
    ** Says KO is executing at "the top its game" in multiple
markets, sees stock's recent decline as overreaction to
transitory deceleration in volume growth in Q3 and concerns
around new U.S. trade policies
    ** But brokerage downgrades J M Smucker  SJM.N  to "hold"
from "buy" and cuts its PT to $121 from $130, citing loss of
scale for previously volatile pet business
    ** Also downgrades WK Kellogg  KLG.N  to "sell" from "hold",
citing weak retail sales momentum heading into 2025, business
disruption risks during supply chain modernization and
distractions from the "Make America Healthy Again" initiative
    ** Last year, shares of MKC, KO and KLG rose ~11, ~5% and
37% respectively, while SJM fell ~13%

 (Reporting by Neil J Kanatt in Bengaluru)
 ((Neil.JKanatt@thomsonreuters.com;))