52,411 Shares in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD) Bought by HighPoint Advisor Group LLC

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 52,411 shares of the fast-food giant's stock, valued at approximately $14,603,000. McDonald's makes up 1.1% of HighPoint Advisor Group LLC's holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. raised its position in shares of McDonald's by 47.2% during the third quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. now owns 1,191 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $314,000 after purchasing an additional 382 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. acquired a new position in shares of McDonald's during the third quarter worth approximately $6,110,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of McDonald's by 20.5% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 991,646 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $261,239,000 after purchasing an additional 168,622 shares during the period. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors raised its position in shares of McDonald's by 3.6% during the third quarter. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors now owns 2,694 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $710,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new position in shares of McDonald's during the third quarter worth approximately $1,015,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on MCD. UBS Group lowered their price target on McDonald's from $340.00 to $335.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on McDonald's from $305.00 to $300.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. KeyCorp lowered their price target on McDonald's from $315.00 to $310.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Wedbush lowered their price target on McDonald's from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Evercore ISI reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $330.00 price target on shares of McDonald's in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, McDonald's presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $315.14.

McDonald's Stock Performance

NYSE MCD traded down $2.72 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $250.79. The company had a trading volume of 2,814,840 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,335,239. McDonald's Co. has a 52 week low of $245.73 and a 52 week high of $302.39. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $265.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $280.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $180.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.29, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.72.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The fast-food giant reported $2.70 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.71 by ($0.01). McDonald's had a negative return on equity of 180.74% and a net margin of 33.36%. The company had revenue of $6.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.63 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that McDonald's Co. will post 12.17 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald's Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 3rd were paid a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.66%. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio is currently 56.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McDonald's news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $265.13, for a total value of $291,377.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 15,878 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,209,734.14. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Jonathan Banner sold 800 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.02, for a total transaction of $220,016.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,225.38. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $265.13, for a total value of $291,377.87. Following the sale, the insider now owns 15,878 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,209,734.14. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,096 shares of company stock worth $1,127,678 in the last quarter. 0.23% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

McDonald's Company Profile

McDonald's Corporation operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald's brand in the United States and internationally. It offers food and beverages, including hamburgers and cheeseburgers, various chicken sandwiches, fries, shakes, desserts, sundaes, cookies, pies, soft drinks, coffee, and other beverages; and full or limited breakfast, as well as sells various other products during limited-time promotions.