Blair William & Co. IL Raises Stock Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Blair William & Co. IL boosted its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 2.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 343,731 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,437 shares during the quarter. Blair William & Co. IL’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $99,644,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC grew its position in McDonald’s by 110.0% during the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 105 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

MCD opened at $313.39 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $300.34 and its 200-day moving average is $297.89. McDonald’s Co. has a one year low of $243.53 and a one year high of $326.32. The company has a market capitalization of $223.91 billion, a PE ratio of 27.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71.

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

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays lifted their price objective on McDonald’s from $347.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective 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. Morgan Stanley cut 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. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $336.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price objective on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.39.

McDonald’s Profile

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.