Caprock Group LLC Boosts Stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Caprock Group LLC increased its position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 13.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,605 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 1,760 shares during the quarter. Caprock Group LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $4,447,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pathstone Holdings LLC raised its position in McDonald’s by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 118,676 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $36,138,000 after purchasing an additional 4,410 shares during the last quarter. Lindenwold Advisors INC boosted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 1.2% during the third quarter. Lindenwold Advisors INC now owns 7,679 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,338,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the period. Aviance Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 0.4% during the third quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,768 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $3,584,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Windle Wealth LLC increased its position in McDonald’s by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Windle Wealth LLC now owns 24,384 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $7,425,000 after acquiring an additional 1,178 shares during the period. Finally, Baron Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $477,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of MCD stock opened at $291.10 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $300.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $277.60. The company has a market cap of $208.61 billion, a PE ratio of 25.56, a P/E/G ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.74. McDonald’s Co. has a 52 week low of $243.53 and a 52 week high of $317.90.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.05. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.79% and a negative return on equity of 175.42%. The company had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.19 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.77 per share. This is a boost from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.43%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.65%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 9,291 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.00, for a total transaction of $2,833,755.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 43,256 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,193,080. The trade was a 17.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 2,346 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total value of $727,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 2,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $900,550. This trade represents a 44.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 35,596 shares of company stock valued at $10,698,289 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MCD. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Loop Capital restated a “buy” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Robert W. Baird cut McDonald’s from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $320.00 to $290.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Guggenheim cut shares of McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, McDonald’s has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $319.46.

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.