McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Holdings Lifted by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,190 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 915 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $12,281,000 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 business. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the first quarter worth $28,000. Clear Investment Research LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Kings Path Partners LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

McDonald’s Trading Up 1.0 %

MCD opened at $296.83 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $277.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $270.73. McDonald’s Co. has a 1 year low of $243.53 and a 1 year high of $302.39. The stock has a market cap of $213.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.20, a PEG ratio of 3.88 and a beta of 0.72.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly 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 178.68%. The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.17 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were paid a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.25%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.71%.

Insider Activity

In other McDonald’s news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total transaction of $428,967.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $446,721.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total value of $428,967.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $446,721.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total transaction of $285,740.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,681 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,557,060. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In 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 corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on MCD shares. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on McDonald’s from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on McDonald’s from $312.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Tigress Financial raised their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $355.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $275.00 to $301.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $306.11.

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.