United Asset Strategies Inc. Has $2.24 Million Stock Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

United Asset Strategies Inc. boosted its position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 8,770 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 210 shares during the quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $2,235,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MCD. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new stake in McDonald’s in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Clear Investment Research LLC bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Kings Path Partners LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the second quarter worth approximately $38,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on MCD shares. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $357.00 to $342.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $295.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Guggenheim upped their price objective on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $295.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $290.00 to $270.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $303.71.

McDonald’s Stock Up 0.3 %

NYSE:MCD opened at $288.66 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $265.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $270.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $207.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 0.71. McDonald’s Co. has a 1-year low of $243.53 and a 1-year high of $302.39.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 29th. The fast-food giant reported $2.97 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.07 by ($0.10). McDonald’s had a net margin of 32.25% and a negative return on equity of 178.68%. The business had revenue of $6.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.17 EPS. McDonald’s’s revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.67 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be paid a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In related news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.26, for a total transaction of $371,893.48. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $387,285.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.70, for a total transaction of $316,992.60. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,583 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,632,712.10. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.26, for a total transaction of $371,893.48. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $387,285.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,793 shares of company stock worth $1,260,106. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Company Profile

McDonald's Corporation operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald's brand in the United States and internationally. It offers food and beverages, including hamburgers and cheeseburgers, various chicken sandwiches, fries, shakes, desserts, sundaes, cookies, pies, soft drinks, coffee, and other beverages; and full or limited breakfast, as well as sells various other products during limited-time promotions.