Howard Capital Management Group LLC Has $891,000 Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Howard Capital Management Group LLC lessened its holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 10.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,925 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 337 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Group LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $891,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Perpetual Ltd bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the 1st quarter worth approximately $237,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 23,210 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $6,544,000 after buying an additional 1,001 shares in the last quarter. Fragasso Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Fragasso Group Inc. now owns 3,672 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,035,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the 1st quarter worth approximately $627,000. Finally, Tealwood Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Tealwood Asset Management Inc. now owns 8,051 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,270,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MCD opened at $314.75 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $293.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $273.48. McDonald’s Co. has a one year low of $243.53 and a one year high of $315.36. The company has a market cap of $226.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.72, a PEG ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 0.73.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The fast-food giant reported $2.97 EPS 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 firm had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.17 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. This is an increase from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 60.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on MCD shares. Argus raised shares of McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased 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. KeyCorp raised their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Ten 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, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $315.69.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In other news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 11,727 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.03, for a total transaction of $3,518,451.81. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 49,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,966,996.55. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other McDonald’s news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 11,727 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.03, for a total value of $3,518,451.81. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 49,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,966,996.55. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed 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 on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total transaction of $428,967.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $446,721.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 34,097 shares of company stock valued at $10,221,233. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

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.