Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ Cuts Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ trimmed its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 16.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 145,794 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 29,362 shares during the period. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $37,094,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of MCD. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 141,160.9% during the 4th quarter. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC now owns 5,613,710 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,664,521,000 after buying an additional 5,609,736 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 66.9% during the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 5,471,007 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,542,550,000 after buying an additional 2,193,769 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the 1st quarter worth approximately $348,206,000. Capital World Investors increased its stake in McDonald’s by 39.7% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,565,398 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,005,264,000 after purchasing an additional 1,012,534 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in McDonald’s by 15.5% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,347,048 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,178,474,000 after purchasing an additional 987,099 shares in the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on McDonald’s in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $288.00 price objective for the company. Loop Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $342.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $295.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on McDonald’s from $310.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on McDonald’s from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $306.11.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.26, for a total transaction of $371,893.48. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at $387,285.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.70, for a total transaction of $316,992.60. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 12,583 shares in the company, valued at $3,632,712.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.26, for a total value of $371,893.48. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $387,285.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 5,193 shares of company stock worth $1,403,593. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

McDonald’s Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of McDonald’s stock opened at $293.85 on Friday. McDonald’s Co. has a twelve month low of $243.53 and a twelve month high of $302.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $211.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.94, a PEG ratio of 3.88 and a beta of 0.72. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $276.44 and its 200 day moving average price is $270.84.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The fast-food giant reported $2.97 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.07 by ($0.10). McDonald’s had a net margin of 32.25% and a negative return on equity of 178.68%. The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.62 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.17 EPS. McDonald’s’s revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.67 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were issued a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 56.71%.

McDonald’s Company 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.