Millstone Evans Group LLC Takes Position in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,519 shares of the fast-food giant's stock, valued at approximately $440,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. United Bank raised its holdings in shares of McDonald's by 3.5% in the third quarter. United Bank now owns 6,446 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $1,963,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC grew its position in McDonald's by 233.8% in the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 1,552 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $473,000 after purchasing an additional 1,087 shares in the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its stake in McDonald's by 10.9% in the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 25,203 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $7,675,000 after buying an additional 2,477 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of McDonald's by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 72,369 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $22,037,000 after buying an additional 5,638 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of McDonald's by 15.0% in the 3rd quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 563,777 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $168,552,000 after buying an additional 73,362 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Erste Group Bank upgraded McDonald's from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Wedbush boosted their price target on shares of McDonald's from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of McDonald's from $347.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of McDonald's from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of McDonald's from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $323.39.

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McDonald's Price Performance

NYSE:MCD traded up $6.47 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $313.39. The stock had a trading volume of 2,623,868 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,331,348. The firm has a market capitalization of $223.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71. McDonald's Co. has a one year low of $243.53 and a one year high of $326.32. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $299.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $297.78.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 EPS 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate that McDonald's Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald's Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio is currently 62.16%.

Insider Activity at McDonald's

In other McDonald's news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 3,409 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.15, for a total transaction of $989,121.35. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 9,675 shares in the company, valued at $2,807,201.25. This trade represents a 26.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.75, for a total value of $84,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 7,887 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,214,275.25. The trade was a 3.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 32,405 shares of company stock valued at $9,886,656 over the last three months. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.