Troy Asset Management Ltd Lowers Stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Troy Asset Management Ltd lessened its stake in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 26.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 100,926 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 35,441 shares during the period. McDonald’s comprises approximately 1.0% of Troy Asset Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Troy Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $29,257,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Boltwood Capital Management grew its stake in McDonald’s by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 1,882 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $546,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Pettee Investors Inc. boosted its position in McDonald’s by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Pettee Investors Inc. now owns 5,401 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,566,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Modus Advisors LLC raised its position in McDonald’s by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Modus Advisors LLC now owns 9,396 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,724,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. lifted its stake in McDonald’s by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. now owns 736 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $213,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Barn Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Barn Wealth LLC now owns 871 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $252,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MCD has been the subject of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Wedbush upped their target price on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on McDonald’s from $342.00 to $340.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $347.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.61.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, 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 completion of the sale, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 3,409 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 9,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,807,201.25. This represents a 26.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 32,405 shares of company stock valued at $9,886,656 in the last three months. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

McDonald’s Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $306.95 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $301.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $298.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $219.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71. McDonald’s Co. has a 52 week low of $243.53 and a 52 week high of $326.32.

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

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 62.16%.

McDonald’s Company 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.