McDonald’s Corporation $MCD Position Raised by Central Bank & Trust Co.

Central Bank & Trust Co. lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 51.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,892 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,368 shares during the period. Central Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $2,284,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,080,505 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $9,752,921,000 after purchasing an additional 646,675 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of McDonald’s by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,560,037 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,699,314,000 after purchasing an additional 384,762 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,359,276,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 17.2% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,637,785 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,130,587,000 after buying an additional 533,448 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diamant Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 30,979.0% in the first quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,596,340 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $806,917,000 after purchasing an additional 2,587,986 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key McDonald’s News

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

• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s raised its quarterly dividend earlier than expected and appointed a new president for its U.S. business. The moves signal continued confidence in shareholder returns while management addresses softer U.S. traffic and uneven international performance. What Is McDonald’s Signaling With Its Faster Dividend And New US Chief?
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts and investment publications view McDonald’s valuation as attractive, citing its high-margin franchise model, strong cash generation and discounted share price. A Seeking Alpha contributor upgraded the stock, while BetterInvesting identified MCD as an “Undervalued Stock.” McDonald’s: Same-Store Sales Are An Overrated Metric
• Neutral Sentiment: The return of the Monopoly promotion, new restaurant experiences and efforts such as the Chicago Marathon pickle-juice giveaway could support brand engagement, although their effect on sales and earnings is uncertain. McDonald’s Monopoly Returns
• Negative Sentiment: McDonald’s faces a proposed federal class-action lawsuit alleging that its AI-assisted pricing tools coordinated menu prices among franchisees, potentially raising antitrust, regulatory and reputational risks. The company denies the allegations, saying the complaint contains inaccuracies and that AI does not set menu prices. McDonald’s Sued Over Alleged AI-Powered Menu Price-Fixing
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. franchisees are reportedly resisting the approximately $8.5 billion “Next” remodeling program, with upgrades potentially costing at least $800,000 per location. The pushback raises execution, franchise-economics and capital-allocation concerns. McDonald’s Franchise Modernization Plan
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that value promotions, including $5 meals and $6 combos, have not restored customer visits suggest persistent affordability and traffic problems. Bernstein cut its price target from $295 to $250 and assigned a “market perform” rating, reinforcing the cautious outlook. McDonald’s Deals Are Not Winning Customers Back

McDonald’s Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of MCD traded down $0.65 on Friday, reaching $236.25. The stock had a trading volume of 2,731,225 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,215,959. McDonald’s Corporation has a twelve month low of $229.20 and a twelve month high of $341.75. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $256.02 and a 200 day moving average of $274.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $167.18 billion, a PE ratio of 19.20, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.44.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The fast-food giant reported $3.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.32 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.13 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.72% and a negative return on equity of 572.06%. McDonald’s’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.19 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be given a $1.93 dividend. This is a positive change from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. This represents a $7.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 1st. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is presently 62.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on MCD. Freedom Capital raised shares of McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Evercore reduced their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. KeyCorp cut their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Melius Research lowered their price target on McDonald’s from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $282.00 to $270.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $295.94.

McDonald’s Company Profile

McDonald’s Corporation is a global quick-service restaurant company that operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald’s brand. Its restaurants serve a menu that includes hamburgers, cheeseburgers, chicken sandwiches, French fries, breakfast items, desserts, salads, beverages and coffee. Offerings vary by market, and many locations provide drive-thru service, delivery and digital ordering through the McDonald’s mobile app.

The company operates through a heavily franchised business model, with restaurants owned and operated by independent franchisees, affiliates and the company itself.