Franklin Resources Inc. Has $1.18 Billion Holdings in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 24.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,054,387 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after buying an additional 794,536 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.57% of McDonald's worth $1,175,326,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MCD. Boltwood Capital Management raised its position in McDonald's by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 1,882 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $546,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Pettee Investors Inc. increased its stake in shares of McDonald's by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Pettee Investors Inc. now owns 5,401 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $1,566,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Modus Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of McDonald's by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Modus Advisors LLC now owns 9,396 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $2,724,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Independent Wealth Network Inc. lifted its stake in McDonald's by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. now owns 736 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $213,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Barn Wealth LLC grew its holdings in McDonald's by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Barn Wealth LLC now owns 871 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $252,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Insider Activity at McDonald's

In related news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.05, for a total transaction of $3,255,525.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 32,756 shares in the company, valued at $10,155,997.80. This trade represents a 24.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.75, for a total transaction of $84,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 28,996 shares of company stock valued at $8,897,534 in the last 90 days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MCD has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on McDonald's from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of McDonald's from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of McDonald's from $342.00 to $340.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of McDonald's from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of McDonald's from $297.00 to $290.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $323.61.

McDonald's Trading Up 0.4 %

McDonald's stock traded up $1.20 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $313.57. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,411,214 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,503,734. The stock has a market cap of $224.03 billion, a PE ratio of 27.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71. McDonald's Co. has a 52 week low of $243.53 and a 52 week high of $326.32. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $302.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $298.35.

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

McDonald's Dividend Announcement

The company 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. McDonald's's payout ratio is 62.16%.

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.