Wealth Architects LLC Lowers Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Wealth Architects LLC lowered its stake in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 11.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,152 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 145 shares during the period. Wealth Architects LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $351,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in McDonald’s by 3.2% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 6,149,080 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,567,030,000 after acquiring an additional 188,888 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 66.9% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 5,471,007 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,542,550,000 after purchasing an additional 2,193,769 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 8.0% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,761,625 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,216,677,000 after purchasing an additional 354,196 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 39.7% during the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,565,398 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,005,264,000 after purchasing an additional 1,012,534 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in McDonald’s by 31,151.1% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,319,142 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $706,202,000 after purchasing an additional 2,311,721 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

McDonald’s stock opened at $294.00 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $210.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.81, a PEG ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.74. McDonald’s Co. has a 1 year low of $243.53 and a 1 year high of $317.90. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $298.74 and its 200-day moving average is $276.35.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.05. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 178.99% and a net margin of 31.79%. The business had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.19 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.77 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This is a boost from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $350.00 to $342.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Tigress Financial raised their price objective on McDonald’s from $355.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Bank of America boosted their price objective on McDonald’s from $321.00 to $324.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Loop Capital reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $319.46.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 12,583 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,632,712.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other McDonald’s news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 11,727 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 49,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,966,996.55. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 35,596 shares of company stock worth $10,698,289 in the last ninety days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.