Rhumbline Advisers Sells 15,081 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Rhumbline Advisers reduced its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,375,046 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 15,081 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers’ holdings in McDonald’s were worth $398,612,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MCD. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of McDonald’s by 31,151.1% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,319,142 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $706,202,000 after acquiring an additional 2,311,721 shares during the period. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec grew its stake in McDonald’s by 542.9% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 801,858 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $244,174,000 after purchasing an additional 677,139 shares in the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth $121,254,000. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI raised its position in McDonald’s by 3,580.1% during the 3rd quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 268,650 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $81,807,000 after purchasing an additional 261,350 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 26,948.9% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 227,752 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $66,023,000 after buying an additional 226,910 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,499 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.95, for a total value of $436,134.05. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at $453,882. This represents a 49.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.75, for a total value of $84,225.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,214,275.25. This represents a 3.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 17,906 shares of company stock valued at $5,406,382. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of MCD stock opened at $308.59 on Friday. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $243.53 and a fifty-two week high of $317.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $221.14 billion, a PE ratio of 27.09, a P/E/G ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.74. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $291.78 and its 200-day simple moving average is $292.20.

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 net margin of 31.79% and a negative return on equity of 175.42%. Sell-side analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.73 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.29%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on MCD. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on McDonald’s from $285.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. TD Securities reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Barclays upped their target price on McDonald’s from $347.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Ten investment 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 company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.61.

About McDonald’s

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.