Private Advisor Group LLC Reduces Stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Private Advisor Group LLC reduced its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 88,573 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 2,589 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $25,676,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Collier Financial purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the third quarter valued at $44,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.05, for a total transaction of $3,255,525.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 32,756 shares in the company, valued at $10,155,997.80. The trade was a 24.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.75, for a total value of $84,225.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,214,275.25. This trade represents a 3.66 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 17,906 shares of company stock worth $5,406,382 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on MCD shares. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on McDonald’s from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Bank of America raised their price target on McDonald’s from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Guggenheim cut McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, TD Securities reissued a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Monday, February 10th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.61.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $304.85 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $292.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $293.38. McDonald’s Co. has a 1-year low of $243.53 and a 1-year high of $317.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $218.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.76, a PEG ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.74.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.32%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 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, Spain, and the U.K.