McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD) Holdings Increased by Commonwealth Equity Services LLC

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its holdings in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 577,815 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after purchasing an additional 5,642 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC owned 0.08% of McDonald's worth $167,503,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. United Bank lifted its position in shares of McDonald's by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 6,446 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $1,963,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares during the period. Baillie Gifford & Co. lifted its position in shares of McDonald's by 18.3% during the 3rd quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 138,155 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $42,070,000 after buying an additional 21,376 shares during the period. Souders Financial Advisors lifted its position in shares of McDonald's by 235.5% during the 3rd quarter. Souders Financial Advisors now owns 14,160 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $4,312,000 after buying an additional 9,940 shares during the period. Gibson Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of McDonald's during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $209,000. Finally, GHE LLC lifted its position in shares of McDonald's by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. GHE LLC now owns 14,541 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $4,363,000 after buying an additional 213 shares during the period. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

McDonald's Price Performance

McDonald's stock opened at $299.40 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $296.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $296.70. McDonald's Co. has a 1 year low of $243.53 and a 1 year high of $326.32. The stock has a market cap of $213.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71.

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

McDonald's Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.36%. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on MCD. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on McDonald's from $336.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Wedbush lifted their target price on McDonald's from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays lifted their price objective on McDonald's from $347.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on McDonald's from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Loop Capital reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $342.00 target price on shares of McDonald's in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. 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.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $323.61.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald's news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the company'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 transaction of $319,918.90. Following the transaction, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 3,409 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.15, for a total transaction of $989,121.35. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 9,675 shares in the company, valued at $2,807,201.25. The trade was a 26.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 33,504 shares of company stock worth $10,206,575 in the last 90 days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

McDonald's Company Profile

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.

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