McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Insider Sells $319,918.90 in Stock

McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.10, for a total value of $319,918.90. Following the sale, the insider now owns 8,187 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,383,235.70. This represents a 11.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

NYSE:MCD traded down $1.39 on Monday, hitting $291.29. 2,491,444 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,479,659. The stock has a market capitalization of $208.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.95 and a beta of 0.73. McDonald’s Co. has a 52 week low of $243.53 and a 52 week high of $317.90. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $297.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $282.73.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.05. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.79% and a negative return on equity of 175.42%. The business had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.19 earnings per share. McDonald’s’s revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.75 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This is an increase from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on MCD shares. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $295.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Tigress Financial increased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $355.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. KeyCorp raised their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Citigroup upped their price objective on McDonald’s from $301.00 to $317.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Guggenheim downgraded McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $320.65.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McDonald’s

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,394,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the second quarter worth $6,612,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,564,359 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,694,403,000 after buying an additional 49,106 shares during the period. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp increased its position in shares of McDonald’s by 58.9% in the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 138,102 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $35,194,000 after buying an additional 51,210 shares in the last quarter. Finally, U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in McDonald’s by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 49,186 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $14,978,000 after buying an additional 2,997 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

About McDonald’s

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.