McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Holdings Lifted by Apeiron RIA LLC

Apeiron RIA LLC grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 29.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,334 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 302 shares during the quarter. Apeiron RIA LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $387,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth $1,394,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in McDonald’s by 0.9% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,564,359 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,694,403,000 after purchasing an additional 49,106 shares during the period. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in McDonald’s by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 49,186 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $14,978,000 after buying an additional 2,997 shares in the last quarter. Weiss Asset Management LP acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter valued at about $16,870,000. Finally, PFW Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth about $2,471,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

McDonald’s Price Performance

NYSE MCD opened at $284.49 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $203.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $291.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $287.90. McDonald’s Co. has a 52-week low of $243.53 and a 52-week high of $317.90.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.05. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.79% and a negative return on equity of 175.42%. The company had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.19 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.73 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MCD has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup upgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $311.00 to $334.00 in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on McDonald’s from $340.00 to $336.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Argus upgraded McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Loop Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $342.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $321.22.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In related news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 3,409 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.15, for a total transaction of $989,121.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 9,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,807,201.25. This trade represents a 26.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,499 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.95, for a total transaction of $436,134.05. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $453,882. This represents a 49.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 8,605 shares of company stock valued at $2,508,102. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

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.