Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC Has $7.63 Million Stock Holdings in McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC boosted its stake in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 49.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,117 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 8,260 shares during the quarter. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $7,633,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 0.4% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 71,647,669 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $21,773,010,000 after acquiring an additional 316,638 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in McDonald’s by 0.8% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,828,352 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $10,175,800,000 after purchasing an additional 272,139 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in McDonald’s by 1.7% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 16,828,420 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $4,901,595,000 after purchasing an additional 276,065 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the second quarter valued at about $2,780,712,000. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in McDonald’s by 29,382.3% in the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,737,548 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,676,339,000 after purchasing an additional 5,718,087 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MCD shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $340.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Oppenheimer upgraded McDonald’s from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $355.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $323.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $339.69.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

MCD opened at $325.03 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $230.90 billion, a PE ratio of 27.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.51. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $319.45 and a 200-day moving average of $311.34. McDonald’s Corporation has a 52-week low of $283.47 and a 52-week high of $341.75.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The fast-food giant reported $3.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.05 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.81 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.85% and a negative return on equity of 343.90%. McDonald’s’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.83 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $1.86 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.26%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 4,692 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.00, for a total value of $1,553,052.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 6,200 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,052,200. This trade represents a 43.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,486 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.00, for a total value of $795,520.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,268 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,005,760. This trade represents a 28.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 74,143 shares of company stock valued at $24,517,724 in the last quarter. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting McDonald’s

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

• Positive Sentiment: Company to roll out $3 value items (and new $4 breakfast deals) in the U.S. starting in April — a clear push to reclaim McDonald’s value image and drive traffic and same‑store sales among cost‑sensitive consumers. This defensive pricing move can help protect market share in an industry focused on affordability. Article Title WSJ
• Positive Sentiment: Digital loyalty program nearing ~210M active users — higher engagement from loyalty can convert promotional traffic into repeat visits and higher lifetime value, supporting revenue resilience even if average check is pressured. Zacks
• Neutral Sentiment: Product and marketing coverage (Big Arch taste tests, spring/Cadbury menu items, Crocs Happy Meal) continue to keep brand relevance high but are unlikely by themselves to change near‑term fundamentals. These items support consumer interest and PR but have mixed near‑term earnings impact. Detroit News
• Neutral Sentiment: Wider press coverage (Quartz, Yahoo, Forbes, MSN) frames the $3 push as part of broader industry price competition; monitoring competitor responses will clarify whether this is a short‑term traffic tactic or a sustained price strategy. Quartz
• Negative Sentiment: Insider sale disclosed — Joseph M. Erlinger sold 2,626 shares (~$862k) on Mar. 10; insider selling can be perceived negatively by the market even if not tied to company outlook. Investors often watch such filings for signals about insider confidence. SEC filing

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.