Freestone Capital Holdings LLC Trims Stock Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Freestone Capital Holdings LLC lessened its holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 0.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 21,099 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 60 shares during the period. Freestone Capital Holdings LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $6,116,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. GDS Wealth Management raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 1.4% in the third quarter. GDS Wealth Management now owns 2,504 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $762,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Boltwood Capital Management raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 1,882 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $546,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Modus Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Modus Advisors LLC now owns 9,396 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,724,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. now owns 736 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $213,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wescott Financial Advisory Group LLC raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 3.0% in the third quarter. Wescott Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,265 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $385,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of MCD stock opened at $307.58 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $219.75 billion, a PE ratio of 27.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $294.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $295.91. McDonald’s Co. has a twelve month low of $243.53 and a twelve month high of $317.90.

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

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.10, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 11.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 32,756 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,155,997.80. This trade represents a 24.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 33,504 shares of company stock valued at $10,206,575. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $347.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $336.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus 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.