Core Alternative Capital Has $8.06 Million Stock Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Core Alternative Capital cut its stake in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 8.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 27,801 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 2,421 shares during the quarter. McDonald’s accounts for approximately 1.7% of Core Alternative Capital’s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Core Alternative Capital’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $8,059,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Essex Financial Services Inc. grew its position in shares of McDonald’s by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 13,415 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $3,889,000 after buying an additional 683 shares during the period. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in McDonald’s by 81.9% during the 4th quarter. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 34,457 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $9,989,000 after acquiring an additional 15,518 shares during the last quarter. Pachira Investments Inc. grew its holdings in McDonald’s by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. Pachira Investments Inc. now owns 830 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $240,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Paladin Wealth LLC increased its stake in McDonald’s by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Paladin Wealth LLC now owns 2,769 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $803,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Private Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,615 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $468,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MCD shares. KeyCorp decreased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $330.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on McDonald’s from $285.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on McDonald’s from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on McDonald’s from $340.00 to $336.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $319.13.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In related news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 3,409 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.15, for a total transaction of $989,121.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,807,201.25. The trade was a 26.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing 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, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $292.50, for a total value of $321,457.50. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 9,286 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,716,155. This represents a 10.58 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 7,406 shares of company stock worth $2,150,857. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Up 4.7 %

MCD stock opened at $308.22 on Tuesday. McDonald’s Co. has a twelve month low of $243.53 and a twelve month high of $317.90. The company has a market cap of $220.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.06, a P/E/G ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.74. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $290.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $291.16.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.79% and a negative return on equity of 175.42%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 62.16%.

McDonald’s Company Profile

McDonald’s Corp. engages in the operation and franchising of restaurants. It operates through the following segments: U.S., International Operated Markets, and International Developmental Licensed Markets and Corporate. The U.S. segment focuses its operations on the United States. The International Operated Markets segment consists of operations and the franchising of restaurants in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Russia, Spain, and the U.K.