Principal Securities Inc. Buys 966 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Principal Securities Inc. raised its stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 9.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 11,099 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 966 shares during the quarter. Principal Securities Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $3,217,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Quantum Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $348,000. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 14.7% during the fourth quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,261 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,685,000 after acquiring an additional 1,187 shares in the last quarter. bLong Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $484,000. Everhart Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,406 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,277,000 after acquiring an additional 440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Beacon Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 855 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $248,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Price Performance

McDonald’s stock opened at $308.59 on Tuesday. McDonald’s Co. has a one year low of $243.53 and a one year high of $317.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $221.14 billion, a PE ratio of 27.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.74. The business’s fifty day moving average is $291.98 and its 200 day moving average is $292.90.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 175.42% and a net margin of 31.79%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.50, for a total value of $321,457.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 9,286 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,716,155. This trade represents a 10.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.05, for a total value of $3,255,525.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 32,756 shares in the company, valued at $10,155,997.80. The trade was a 24.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 17,906 shares of company stock valued at $5,406,382 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on MCD. Truist Financial decreased their target price on McDonald’s from $342.00 to $340.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Loop Capital restated a “buy” rating and set a $342.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, January 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays increased their price objective on McDonald’s from $347.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on McDonald’s from $297.00 to $290.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.61.

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.