Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC Has $1.16 Million Stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,538 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $1,157,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Gilbert & Cook Inc. lifted its holdings in McDonald’s by 20.7% during the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 4,384 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,300,000 after purchasing an additional 753 shares during the last quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in McDonald’s by 14.5% during the fourth quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,899 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $563,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,796 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $829,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 99.3% in the 4th quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 5,892 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,722,000 after purchasing an additional 2,935 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth $3,628,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.70, for a total transaction of $316,992.60. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,583 shares in the company, valued at $3,632,712.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.70, for a total transaction of $316,992.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,583 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,632,712.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at $387,285.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 6,291 shares of company stock valued at $1,689,073 in the last 90 days. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

MCD traded up $0.26 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $288.29. 261,239 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,490,353. McDonald’s Co. has a one year low of $243.53 and a one year high of $302.39. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $267.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $270.81. The company has a market cap of $207.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 0.72.

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 company had revenue of $6.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.17 earnings per share. McDonald’s’s revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be given a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 3rd. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 56.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on MCD. Guggenheim lifted their target price on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Tigress Financial lifted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $355.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $288.00 price objective for the company. Loop Capital dropped their price target on McDonald’s from $357.00 to $342.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $310.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $303.89.

About McDonald’s

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.