IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd Increases Stake in McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd increased its holdings in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 6.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,960 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,850 shares during the quarter. IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $8,753,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund lifted its holdings in McDonald’s by 22.5% in the 2nd quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 202,070 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $59,039,000 after purchasing an additional 37,100 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 2.6% in the second quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 4,888 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,429,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Facet Wealth Inc. grew its stake in McDonald’s by 56.0% during the 2nd quarter. Facet Wealth Inc. now owns 1,256 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $377,000 after acquiring an additional 451 shares in the last quarter. Liberty Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in McDonald’s by 8.0% during the 2nd quarter. Liberty Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,297 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $379,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Watch Advisors INC acquired a new stake in McDonald’s in the 2nd quarter valued at about $514,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

McDonald’s Trading Up 1.4%

MCD stock opened at $309.97 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $306.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $305.71. McDonald’s Corporation has a 12-month low of $276.53 and a 12-month high of $326.32. The company has a market capitalization of $221.19 billion, a PE ratio of 26.56, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.50.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The fast-food giant reported $3.19 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.15 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $6.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.68 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 225.52% and a net margin of 32.21%.McDonald’s’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.97 EPS. Research analysts predict that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.86 per share. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. This is an increase from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 60.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on MCD. Mizuho set a $300.00 price target on McDonald’s in a research report on Monday. Bank of America lowered their price objective on McDonald’s from $327.00 to $322.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Citigroup dropped their target price on McDonald’s from $381.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Guggenheim reduced their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $310.00 to $295.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $323.43.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In related news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,487 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total value of $770,970.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 8,754 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,713,740. This trade represents a 22.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total value of $315,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 6,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,160,270. The trade was a 12.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,463 shares of company stock valued at $1,692,186 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

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.