Wedbush Securities Inc. Increases Stock Position in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Wedbush Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 27,649 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after acquiring an additional 1,286 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc.'s holdings in McDonald's were worth $8,015,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Mattern Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in McDonald's by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Mattern Capital Management LLC now owns 30,110 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $8,729,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares during the last quarter. Bell Bank lifted its position in McDonald's by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Bell Bank now owns 12,699 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $3,681,000 after buying an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new position in McDonald's during the fourth quarter worth $1,628,000. Integral Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in McDonald's by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Integral Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 6,512 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $1,888,000 after buying an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PFW Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald's in the 4th quarter worth $2,471,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company's stock.

McDonald's Price Performance

Shares of MCD stock traded down $0.41 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $299.42. 1,798,211 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,543,317. The business's fifty day moving average is $304.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $298.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $213.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.26, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.62. McDonald's Co. has a 12-month low of $243.53 and a 12-month high of $326.32.

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

McDonald's Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.36%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MCD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of McDonald's from $347.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Bank of America increased their price objective on McDonald's from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on McDonald's from $297.00 to $290.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on McDonald's from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Wedbush boosted their price objective on shares of McDonald's from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Nine 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's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $322.87.

Insider Activity

In other McDonald's news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.75, for a total transaction of $84,225.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,887 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,214,275.25. This trade represents a 3.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Tiffanie L. Boyd sold 1,000 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.27, for a total value of $309,270.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,564 shares in the company, valued at $1,720,778.28. This trade represents a 15.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 27,497 shares of company stock valued at $8,461,400. Insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

McDonald's 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.