McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Stake Lessened by Navellier & Associates Inc.

Navellier & Associates Inc. cut its holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 16.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,155 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 995 shares during the quarter. Navellier & Associates Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $1,570,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. boosted its position in McDonald’s by 2.4% during the third quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 1,422 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $433,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. Riversedge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 2.0% during the 3rd 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 holdings in 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 worth $1,057,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GDS Wealth Management raised its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In related news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total transaction of $428,967.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $446,721.60. The trade was a 48.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.70, for a total transaction of $316,992.60. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,583 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,632,712.10. This represents a 8.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 35,596 shares of company stock worth $10,698,289 over the last ninety days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

McDonald’s Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of MCD stock opened at $287.51 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $300.06 and a 200 day moving average of $277.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $206.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.54, a PEG ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.74. McDonald’s Co. has a 52 week low of $243.53 and a 52 week high of $317.90.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.05. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.79% and a negative return on equity of 175.42%. The company had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.82 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.19 earnings per share. McDonald’s’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.77 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.46%. 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 presently 58.65%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on MCD shares. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $295.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $301.00 to $317.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $319.46.

McDonald’s Company Profile

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.