McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Shares Acquired by Sfmg LLC

Sfmg LLC grew its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 15.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,181 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 705 shares during the quarter. Sfmg LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $1,536,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 51.9% in the third quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 123 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Retirement Group LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Bear Mountain Capital Inc. acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth $43,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on MCD. Bank of America boosted their target price on McDonald’s from $291.00 to $341.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Barclays lowered their target price on McDonald’s from $343.00 to $340.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Argus reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Monday, March 25th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on McDonald’s from $312.00 to $297.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $319.72.

McDonald’s Price Performance

NYSE MCD traded down $0.80 on Wednesday, hitting $265.43. 2,912,853 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,207,264. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $284.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $280.76. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $245.73 and a fifty-two week high of $302.39. The firm has a market cap of $191.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.71.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The fast-food giant reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.83 by $0.12. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 171.96% and a net margin of 33.22%. The company had revenue of $6.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.45 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.59 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were given a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.52%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 57.74%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total value of $312,533.62. Following the sale, the insider now owns 18,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,140,168.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About McDonald’s

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.