Abacus Planning Group Inc. Raises Stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Abacus Planning Group Inc. grew its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 1.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,650 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Abacus Planning Group Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $1,140,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,725,190,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 39,039.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,497,919 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,092,645,000 after acquiring an additional 3,488,982 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $703,074,000. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $350,935,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in McDonald’s by 11.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 8,867,193 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,570,511,000 after purchasing an additional 895,896 shares in the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McDonald’s Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $307.44 on Friday. McDonald’s Co. has a 12-month low of $243.53 and a 12-month high of $326.32. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $312.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $302.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $219.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.99, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.56.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The fast-food giant reported $2.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. The firm had revenue of $5.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.17 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.70 EPS. McDonald’s’s quarterly revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 62.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Wedbush raised their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on McDonald’s from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays increased their target price on McDonald’s from $347.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their target price on McDonald’s from $292.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $324.96.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.07, for a total value of $295,850.73. Following the sale, the insider now owns 11,161 shares in the company, valued at $3,516,496.27. This represents a 7.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.25% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.