McDonald's (NYSE:MCD) Trading Down 0.1% on Analyst Downgrade

McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) fell 0.1% on Wednesday after Barclays lowered their price target on the stock from $350.00 to $347.00. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the stock. McDonald's traded as low as $314.79 and last traded at $318.68. 896,949 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 75% from the average session volume of 3,577,468 shares. The stock had previously closed at $319.08.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on MCD. Piper Sandler dropped 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. TD Securities reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of McDonald's in a report on Monday, February 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of McDonald's from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on McDonald's from $342.00 to $340.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their target price on McDonald's from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $322.74.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald's

In related 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,887 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,214,275.25. This represents a 3.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.05, for a total value 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 approximately $10,155,997.80. The trade was a 24.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 27,497 shares of company stock valued at $8,461,400 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McDonald's

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

McDonald's Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $227.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.62. The firm's fifty day moving average is $307.59 and its 200 day moving average is $299.47.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last issued 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 negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. On average, analysts forecast that McDonald's Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current year.

McDonald's Dividend Announcement

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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.22%. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.16%.

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.

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