Joseph M. Erlinger Sells 1,098 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Stock

McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.70, for a total value of $316,992.60. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 12,583 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,632,712.10. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

McDonald’s Price Performance

MCD stock opened at $289.52 on Friday. McDonald’s Co. has a 1 year low of $243.53 and a 1 year high of $302.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $208.65 billion, a PE ratio of 24.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.71. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $262.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $270.91.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The fast-food giant reported $2.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.07 by ($0.10). McDonald’s had a net margin of 32.25% and a negative return on equity of 178.92%. The company had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.62 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.17 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.71 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be paid a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.71%.

Institutional Trading of McDonald’s

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MCD. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the second quarter valued at approximately $628,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its position in shares of McDonald’s by 10.8% during the 2nd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 11,747 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,969,000 after purchasing an additional 1,143 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 266.7% in the 2nd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 202,375 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $51,573,000 after buying an additional 147,184 shares during the period. Kimelman & Baird LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the second quarter valued at about $7,352,000. Finally, B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in McDonald’s by 7.7% during the second quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 58,352 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $14,870,000 after buying an additional 4,153 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on MCD shares. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on McDonald’s from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $290.00 to $270.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Guggenheim raised their target price on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on McDonald’s in a report on Thursday, June 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $288.00 price target for the company. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $303.71.

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.