McDonald's (NYSE:MCD) Stock Price Up 0.1% - Still a Buy?

McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) shares rose 0.1% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $310.15 and last traded at $309.45. Approximately 725,658 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 3,575,615 shares. The stock had previously closed at $309.10.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MCD has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup dropped their price target on McDonald's from $360.00 to $353.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Bank of America lifted their price target on McDonald's from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of McDonald's from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of McDonald's from $297.00 to $290.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Loop Capital reissued a "buy" rating and set a $342.00 price target on shares of McDonald's in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Nine 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $322.87.

McDonald's Price Performance

The business's fifty day moving average price is $307.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $299.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $220.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.15, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.62.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last announced 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 negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. Equities research analysts predict that McDonald's Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald's Announces Dividend

The firm 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now owns 7,887 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,214,275.25. This represents a 3.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 3,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.76, for a total value of $962,432.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 9,858 shares in the company, valued at $2,964,892.08. This represents a 24.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 27,497 shares of company stock valued at $8,461,400. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of McDonald's

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MCD. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in McDonald's in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new stake in McDonald's in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA purchased a new position in shares of McDonald's during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Collier Financial bought a new position in shares of McDonald's during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Pinney & Scofield Inc. purchased a new position in McDonald's in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.