First Financial Bank Trust Division Decreases Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

First Financial Bank Trust Division reduced its stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 4.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 12,992 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 543 shares during the period. First Financial Bank Trust Division’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $3,766,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in McDonald’s by 1.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,916,980 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $4,833,510,000 after acquiring an additional 220,365 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,082,894 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $4,592,892,000 after purchasing an additional 128,800 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in McDonald’s by 3.2% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 6,149,080 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,567,030,000 after purchasing an additional 188,888 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in McDonald’s by 0.9% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,564,359 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,694,403,000 after purchasing an additional 49,106 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in McDonald’s by 8.0% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,761,625 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,216,677,000 after buying an additional 354,196 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MCD has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Loop Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Guggenheim downgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered McDonald’s from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $320.00 to $290.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $320.65.

McDonald’s Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:MCD traded up $2.62 during trading on Thursday, reaching $292.51. 3,054,034 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,443,814. McDonald’s Co. has a 52-week low of $243.53 and a 52-week high of $317.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $209.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.68, a P/E/G ratio of 3.95 and a beta of 0.73. The business’s fifty day moving average is $294.75 and its 200-day moving average is $284.60.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.19 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In related news, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 2,346 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total transaction of $727,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 2,905 shares in the company, valued at $900,550. This represents a 44.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 3,409 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.15, for a total value of $989,121.35. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,807,201.25. The trade was a 26.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,551 shares of company stock worth $3,120,554. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

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.