GAMMA Investing LLC Lowers Position in McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

GAMMA Investing LLC lessened its holdings in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 12.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,421 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 2,692 shares during the quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $5,250,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,351,127 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $22,112,675,000 after buying an additional 703,458 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,983,997 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $10,997,789,000 after buying an additional 959,140 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in McDonald’s by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,038,519 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $5,195,965,000 after acquiring an additional 76,090 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in McDonald’s by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 9,474,749 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,895,768,000 after acquiring an additional 277,617 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,890,438,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MCD. Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 price objective on McDonald’s in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 16th. BTIG Research dropped their price target on McDonald’s from $370.00 to $350.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on McDonald’s from $385.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $330.36.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In related news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,763 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.36, for a total value of $769,108.68. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 6,268 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,744,760.48. This trade represents a 30.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 5,252 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.32, for a total value of $1,493,248.64. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 7,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,198,930.88. This trade represents a 40.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 8,348 shares of company stock valued at $2,355,634 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of MCD stock opened at $268.35 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $190.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.12, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.41. McDonald’s Corporation has a 1-year low of $260.96 and a 1-year high of $341.75. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $274.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $297.05.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The fast-food giant reported $3.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.06. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.62% and a negative return on equity of 442.10%. The firm had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.13 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.19 earnings per share. McDonald’s’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.86 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 61.34%.

More McDonald’s News

Here are the key news stories impacting McDonald’s this week:

• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s reported second-quarter adjusted earnings of $3.38 per share, above the $3.32 analyst consensus and up from $3.19 a year earlier. Stronger franchised margins and comparable-sales growth across its operating segments helped offset the revenue shortfall. McDonald’s Q2 Earnings Surpass Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Global comparable sales increased roughly 4%, supported by international markets and record restaurant margins. The results suggest McDonald’s continues to generate resilient profitability outside the United States. McDonald’s Q2 Earnings Call Highlights
• Positive Sentiment: The company appointed longtime executive Skye Anderson as president of McDonald’s USA, replacing Joe Erlinger. Anderson will oversee nearly 14,000 U.S. restaurants and is expected to improve service, simplify value offerings and restore traffic in the company’s largest market. McDonald’s Names Skye Anderson as U.S. President

About McDonald’s

McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD) is a global quick-service restaurant company best known for its hamburgers, French fries and breakfast offerings. The company develops, operates and franchises a system of restaurants that sell a range of food and beverage items, including signature products such as the Big Mac, Quarter Pounder, Chicken McNuggets, McCafé coffee beverages and a variety of salads, desserts and seasonal menu items. McDonald’s serves customers through company-operated restaurants and franchised locations, and it supports sales via dine-in, drive-thru, digital ordering platforms and third-party delivery partnerships.

Founded in 1940 by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald as a single San Bernardino, California restaurant, the business was transformed into a franchising model after Ray Kroc joined in the mid-1950s and led the brand’s national and international expansion.