Benjamin Edwards Inc. Buys 194,774 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 1,975.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 204,636 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 194,774 shares during the period. McDonald’s makes up approximately 0.9% of Benjamin Edwards Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Benjamin Edwards Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $62,339,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in McDonald’s by 31,151.1% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,319,142 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $706,202,000 after buying an additional 2,311,721 shares during the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 542.9% during the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 801,858 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $244,174,000 after purchasing an additional 677,139 shares during the last quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD bought a new position in McDonald’s during the second quarter valued at approximately $110,321,000. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new stake in McDonald’s in the third quarter worth approximately $121,254,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in McDonald’s by 8.0% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,761,625 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,216,677,000 after purchasing an additional 354,196 shares during the period. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

McDonald’s stock opened at $296.01 on Monday. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $243.53 and a fifty-two week high of $317.90. The company has a market capitalization of $212.13 billion, a PE ratio of 25.99, a P/E/G ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $299.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $279.04.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. The business’s revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.19 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.77 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.39%. This is a positive change from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is presently 62.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MCD. Robert W. Baird cut McDonald’s from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $320.00 to $290.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barclays upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $350.00 to $342.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $301.00 to $317.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $319.64.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total value of $428,967.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $446,721.60. The trade was a 48.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,484 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,428,777.88. The trade was a 8.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 35,597 shares of company stock valued at $10,702,754 over the last quarter. 0.23% of the stock is 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.