Cutler Investment Counsel LLC Sells 1,148 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Cutler Investment Counsel LLC trimmed its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 2.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 54,934 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 1,148 shares during the quarter. McDonald’s accounts for approximately 2.0% of Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $15,925,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA bought a new position in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth about $44,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on MCD shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on McDonald’s from $336.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Baird R W cut McDonald’s from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Guggenheim cut shares of McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $347.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.61.

McDonald’s Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:MCD opened at $308.59 on Monday. McDonald’s Co. has a 12-month low of $243.53 and a 12-month high of $317.90. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $291.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $292.71. The firm has a market cap of $221.14 billion, a PE ratio of 27.09, a PEG ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.74.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 175.42% and a net margin of 31.79%. On average, research analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.73 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald’s news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 32,756 shares in the company, valued at $10,155,997.80. This represents a 24.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 3,409 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.15, for a total value of $989,121.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,807,201.25. This trade represents a 26.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 17,906 shares of company stock valued at $5,406,382 over the last quarter. 0.23% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

McDonald’s 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.