Country Trust Bank Increases Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Country Trust Bank increased its stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 64.1% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 476 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the period. Country Trust Bank’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $145,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Concentric Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Concentric Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,551 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $756,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Founders Financial Alliance LLC increased its position in McDonald’s by 0.7% during the second quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC now owns 4,980 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,269,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 1.3% in the first quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,833 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $799,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,049 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $3,060,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Weatherly Asset Management L. P. boosted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Weatherly Asset Management L. P. now owns 4,378 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,234,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total transaction of $428,967.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $446,721.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 9,291 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.00, for a total transaction of $2,833,755.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 43,256 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,193,080. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total value of $428,967.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $446,721.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 31,751 shares of company stock worth $9,493,973. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

MCD stock opened at $301.90 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $287.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $271.84. McDonald’s Co. has a one year low of $243.53 and a one year high of $306.96. The firm has a market cap of $217.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.63, a PEG ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.73.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released 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). The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.62 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 178.68% and a net margin of 32.25%. McDonald’s’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.17 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.77 per share. This is a positive change from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Barclays decreased their price target on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $295.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Tigress Financial raised their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $355.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $310.12.

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.