GPM Growth Investors Inc. Reduces Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

GPM Growth Investors Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,167 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 287 shares during the quarter. McDonald’s makes up 2.5% of GPM Growth Investors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. GPM Growth Investors Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $5,846,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mattern Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Mattern Capital Management LLC now owns 30,110 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $8,729,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares in the last quarter. Bell Bank raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Bell Bank now owns 12,699 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $3,681,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in McDonald’s in the third quarter worth $1,394,000. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new position in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth $1,628,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 0.9% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,564,359 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,694,403,000 after purchasing an additional 49,106 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Trading Up 0.6 %

McDonald’s stock opened at $307.58 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $294.82 and a 200 day moving average of $295.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $219.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.00, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71. McDonald’s Co. has a 12-month low of $243.53 and a 12-month high of $317.90.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.73% and a negative return on equity of 181.63%. On average, analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.30%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 62.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on MCD shares. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on McDonald’s from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $342.00 to $340.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $297.00 to $290.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on McDonald’s from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten research 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, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.61.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McDonald’s news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of the company’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 32,756 shares in the company, valued at $10,155,997.80. This represents a 24.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Tiffanie L. Boyd sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.27, for a total value of $309,270.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,720,778.28. This represents a 15.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 33,504 shares of company stock worth $10,206,575 in the last three months. 0.23% of the stock is owned by company 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.