Verus Capital Partners LLC Decreases Stock Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Verus Capital Partners LLC trimmed its holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 9.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 9,314 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 1,004 shares during the period. Verus Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $2,700,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new stake in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the third quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were 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 directly owns 7,887 shares in the company, 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 3,409 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 9,675 shares in the company, valued at $2,807,201.25. This trade represents a 26.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 32,504 shares of company stock valued at $9,897,305 over the last 90 days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

McDonald’s Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of MCD stock opened at $309.88 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $293.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $294.82. McDonald’s Co. has a 52 week low of $243.53 and a 52 week high of $317.90. The company has a market cap of $222.07 billion, a PE ratio of 27.21, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.74.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. Equities research analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. KeyCorp increased their price objective on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. TD Securities reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Loop Capital reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $342.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.61.

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.