53,522 Shares in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Acquired by Guardian Partners Inc.

Guardian Partners Inc. purchased a new position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 53,522 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock, valued at approximately $15,355,000. McDonald’s comprises 1.6% of Guardian Partners Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MCD. Boltwood Capital Management raised its stake in McDonald’s by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 1,882 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $546,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Pettee Investors Inc. raised its stake in McDonald’s by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Pettee Investors Inc. now owns 5,401 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,566,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Modus Advisors LLC raised its stake in McDonald’s by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Modus Advisors LLC now owns 9,396 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,724,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. raised its stake in McDonald’s by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. now owns 736 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $213,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Barn Wealth LLC raised its stake in McDonald’s by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Barn Wealth LLC now owns 871 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $252,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MCD has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Erste Group Bank raised McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Bank of America lifted their target price on McDonald’s from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Wedbush lifted their price target on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, McDonald’s has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $323.39.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.05, for a total transaction of $3,255,525.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 32,756 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,155,997.80. This trade represents a 24.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.10, for a total value of $319,918.90. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 8,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,383,235.70. The trade was a 11.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 33,504 shares of company stock worth $10,206,575. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

McDonald’s Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $305.07 on Friday. McDonald’s Co. has a 52-week low of $243.53 and a 52-week high of $326.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $217.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.78, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $298.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $297.46.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. As a group, analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.32%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is 62.16%.

McDonald’s Company Profile

McDonald’s Corp. engages in the operation and franchising of restaurants. It operates through the following segments: U.S., International Operated Markets, and International Developmental Licensed Markets and Corporate. The U.S. segment focuses its operations on the United States. The International Operated Markets segment consists of operations and the franchising of restaurants in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and the U.K.