Blodgett Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 1,500 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Blodgett Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 31.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 3,295 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 1,500 shares during the period. McDonald’s makes up about 1.0% of Blodgett Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Blodgett Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $977,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MCD. Callan Capital LLC raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 11.3% in the 4th quarter. Callan Capital LLC now owns 1,400 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $415,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 11.1% in the fourth quarter. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,000 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $297,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Jackson Hole Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 13.5% during the fourth quarter. Jackson Hole Capital Partners LLC now owns 10,167 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $3,015,000 after buying an additional 1,210 shares during the last quarter. Syon Capital LLC increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 19.2% in the 4th quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 5,915 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,754,000 after buying an additional 951 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meritage Portfolio Management boosted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 34,451 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $10,215,000 after acquiring an additional 2,346 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total transaction of $303,750.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 16,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,696,517.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total transaction of $312,533.62. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,140,168.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total value of $303,750.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 16,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,696,517.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.23% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on MCD shares. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $325.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $297.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Argus reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on McDonald’s from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $318.41.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

MCD stock traded down $2.51 during trading on Friday, reaching $273.09. 3,636,458 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,338,426. The company has a market capitalization of $196.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.71. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $281.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $281.53. McDonald’s Co. has a 12 month low of $245.73 and a 12 month high of $302.39.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The fast-food giant reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.83 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $6.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.45 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 33.22% and a negative return on equity of 171.96%. McDonald’s’s revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.59 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.34 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.74%.

McDonald’s Profile

McDonald's Corporation operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald's brand in the United States and internationally. It offers food and beverages, including hamburgers and cheeseburgers, various chicken sandwiches, fries, shakes, desserts, sundaes, cookies, pies, soft drinks, coffee, and other beverages; and full or limited breakfast, as well as sells various other products during limited-time promotions.