Commerce Bank Decreases Stock Holdings in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Commerce Bank lowered its holdings in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 1.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 497,356 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after selling 8,573 shares during the quarter. McDonald's comprises about 0.9% of Commerce Bank's investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. Commerce Bank owned 0.07% of McDonald's worth $151,450,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MCD. Kings Path Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of McDonald's during the second quarter worth about $38,000. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in McDonald's during the third quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in McDonald's during the third quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in McDonald's during the second quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of McDonald's during the second quarter worth approximately $65,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company's stock.

McDonald's Trading Down 0.5 %

McDonald's stock traded down $1.38 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $289.35. The stock had a trading volume of 1,302,359 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,491,662. The firm has a market capitalization of $207.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.55, a P/E/G ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.74. The firm's 50 day moving average is $300.04 and its 200 day moving average is $277.75. McDonald's Co. has a one year low of $243.53 and a one year high of $317.90.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.82 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.19 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that McDonald's Co. will post 11.77 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald's Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.77 per share. This is a boost from McDonald's's previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.45%. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.16%.

Insider Activity at McDonald's

In other news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,499 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.51, for a total value of $441,470.49. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at $459,435.60. This trade represents a 49.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 2,346 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total transaction of $727,260.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 2,905 shares in the company, valued at $900,550. This trade represents a 44.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 35,596 shares of company stock valued at $10,698,289 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MCD shares. Guggenheim lowered McDonald's from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Argus upgraded McDonald's from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on McDonald's from $284.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Loop Capital restated a "buy" rating on shares of McDonald's in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on McDonald's from $305.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $319.46.

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.