McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Stock Position Reduced by Bridgewater Associates LP

Bridgewater Associates LP lessened its position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 78.0% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 236,633 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 837,803 shares during the quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $72,057,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cynosure Group LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $216,000. Townsquare Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 54,780 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $16,681,000 after purchasing an additional 2,038 shares during the last quarter. Carlson Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Carlson Capital Management now owns 827 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $252,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Shum Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $361,000. Finally, J. Stern & Co. LLP bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,309,000. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In related news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total transaction of $428,967.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $446,721.60. This trade represents a 48.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Ian Frederick Borden sold 5,939 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.04, for a total value of $1,781,937.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 20,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,121,716.12. This represents a 22.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 35,597 shares of company stock valued at $10,702,754 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on MCD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on McDonald’s from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on McDonald’s from $295.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Bank of America raised their target price on McDonald’s from $321.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $295.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Loop Capital restated a “buy” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $319.46.

McDonald’s Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of McDonald’s stock opened at $296.31 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $212.34 billion, a PE ratio of 26.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.74. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $299.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $278.55. McDonald’s Co. has a 12 month low of $243.53 and a 12 month high of $317.90.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.82 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 175.42% and a net margin of 31.79%. McDonald’s’s revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.19 earnings per share. Analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.39%. 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 58.65%.

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.