McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Stake Lifted by Carlson Capital Management

Carlson Capital Management raised its position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 5.2% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 827 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Carlson Capital Management’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $252,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quent Capital LLC boosted its stake in McDonald’s by 10.4% in the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 3,006 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $848,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the period. Gabelli Funds LLC lifted its position in McDonald’s by 40.0% in the 1st quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 1,050 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $296,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Bayesian Capital Management LP increased its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 109.0% in the first quarter. Bayesian Capital Management LP now owns 1,549 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $437,000 after acquiring an additional 808 shares during the last quarter. Dynasty Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the first quarter worth $473,000. Finally, Creekmur Asset Management LLC boosted its position in McDonald’s by 3.8% during the first quarter. Creekmur Asset Management LLC now owns 1,354 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $382,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MCD has been the topic of several analyst reports. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $295.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $285.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on McDonald’s from $284.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on McDonald’s from $295.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $319.46.

McDonald’s Price Performance

MCD stock traded down $1.33 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $294.86. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 287,567 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,491,165. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $299.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $278.40. McDonald’s Co. has a twelve month low of $243.53 and a twelve month high of $317.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $211.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.00, a PEG ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 0.74.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.82 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 175.42% and a net margin of 31.79%. McDonald’s’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.19 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.40%. This is a positive change from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 58.65%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.57, for a total value of $328,128.43. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 11,484 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,428,777.88. This trade represents a 8.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 11,727 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.03, for a total transaction of $3,518,451.81. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 49,885 shares in the company, valued at $14,966,996.55. The trade was a 19.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 34,498 shares of company stock worth $10,381,296 in the last quarter. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About McDonald’s

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.