McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Shares Sold by Sterling Financial Planning Inc.

Sterling Financial Planning Inc. decreased its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 47.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,023 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 928 shares during the quarter. Sterling Financial Planning Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $297,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in McDonald’s by 21.4% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 140,807 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $42,877,000 after buying an additional 24,787 shares during the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in McDonald’s during the third quarter worth approximately $127,000. Calton & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the third quarter valued at approximately $200,000. Pictet North America Advisors SA raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 0.9% during the third quarter. Pictet North America Advisors SA now owns 48,121 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $14,653,000 after purchasing an additional 435 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alexander Labrunerie & CO. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $315,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MCD has been the topic of several research analyst reports. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted 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. Truist Financial dropped their price target on McDonald’s from $342.00 to $340.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on McDonald’s from $336.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $336.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $323.61.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald’s news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,499 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.95, for a total transaction of $436,134.05. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $453,882. The trade was a 49.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 32,756 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,155,997.80. This trade represents a 24.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 21,106 shares of company stock worth $6,368,814 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of MCD stock opened at $301.71 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $292.32 and its 200 day moving average price is $293.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $216.21 billion, a PE ratio of 26.49, a P/E/G ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.74. McDonald’s Co. has a 1-year low of $243.53 and a 1-year high of $317.90.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.73% and a negative return on equity of 181.63%. Equities research analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.16%.

About McDonald’s

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.