Hartford Investment Management Co. Sells 786 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Hartford Investment Management Co. decreased its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 44,237 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 786 shares during the quarter. Hartford Investment Management Co.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $12,824,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Riversedge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in McDonald’s by 2.0% in the third quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC now owns 1,686 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $513,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Proquility Private Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Proquility Private Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,472 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,057,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 1,300 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $396,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. GDS Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. GDS Wealth Management now owns 2,504 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $762,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boltwood Capital Management increased its position 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 worth $546,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of McDonald’s stock opened at $310.16 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $291.02 and its 200 day moving average is $291.56. McDonald’s Co. has a one year low of $243.53 and a one year high of $317.90. The firm has a market cap of $222.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.23, a PEG ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.74.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 175.42% and a net margin of 31.79%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.16%.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $291.10, for a total transaction of $319,918.90. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 8,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,383,235.70. This represents a 11.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,499 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.95, for a total value of $436,134.05. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $453,882. This trade represents a 49.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 7,406 shares of company stock valued at $2,150,857 in the last 90 days. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on MCD. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on McDonald’s from $336.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Citigroup upped their target price on McDonald’s from $336.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.61.

McDonald’s 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, Russia, Spain, and the U.K.