Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC Trims Position in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,706 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after selling 987 shares during the period. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC's holdings in McDonald's were worth $10,061,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in McDonald's in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA bought a new stake in shares of McDonald's in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Collier Financial purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald's during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Fairway Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in McDonald's by 110.0% in the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 105 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. bought a new position in McDonald's in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McDonald's Stock Performance

Shares of McDonald's stock traded up $0.38 during trading on Friday, hitting $316.60. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,282,625 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,575,998. McDonald's Co. has a 52 week low of $243.53 and a 52 week high of $326.32. The company has a market capitalization of $226.20 billion, a PE ratio of 27.80, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $307.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $299.70.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.83. McDonald's had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. As a group, analysts predict that McDonald's Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current year.

McDonald's Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio is currently 62.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on MCD shares. TD Securities reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $300.00 price target on shares of McDonald's in a research report on Monday, February 10th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of McDonald's from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of McDonald's from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on McDonald's from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on McDonald's from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald's currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $322.74.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald's news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.05, for a total transaction of $3,255,525.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 3,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.76, for a total transaction of $962,432.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 9,858 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,964,892.08. The trade was a 24.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 28,136 shares of company stock worth $8,676,247. 0.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.