Riversedge Advisors LLC Acquires 33 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Riversedge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 2.0% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,686 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $513,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Perpetual Ltd bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the first quarter worth $237,000. Walker Asset Management LLC raised its position in McDonald’s by 4.7% in the first quarter. Walker Asset Management LLC now owns 1,053 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $297,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital boosted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 6.5% during the first quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 5,818 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,567,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 2.7% during the first quarter. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services now owns 11,322 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $3,192,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lantz Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 2.9% in the first quarter. Lantz Financial LLC now owns 5,072 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,430,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on MCD. Argus upgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. UBS Group increased their price objective on McDonald’s from $305.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on McDonald’s from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Bank of America reduced their price target on McDonald’s from $288.00 to $278.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on McDonald’s from $284.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $315.69.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total transaction of $285,740.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 13,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,557,060. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total transaction of $285,740.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,557,060. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 11,727 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.03, for a total transaction of $3,518,451.81. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 49,885 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,966,996.55. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 34,097 shares of company stock valued at $10,221,233. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

McDonald’s stock traded up $0.28 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $313.20. The stock had a trading volume of 620,107 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,348,582. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $243.53 and a fifty-two week high of $315.36. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $292.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $273.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $225.72 billion, a PE ratio of 26.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 0.73.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The fast-food giant reported $2.97 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $6.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.17 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.71 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 issued a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This is a positive change from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.10%.

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.