McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Shares Acquired by Independence Bank of Kentucky

Independence Bank of Kentucky raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 21.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,865 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 1,544 shares during the period. Independence Bank of Kentucky’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $2,570,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in McDonald’s during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Hara Capital LLC bought a new stake in McDonald’s during the third quarter worth approximately $44,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the third quarter worth approximately $58,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the third quarter valued at $72,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

McDonald’s Stock Down 0.5 %

NYSE:MCD opened at $288.83 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $291.12 and its 200-day moving average is $289.51. The firm has a market cap of $206.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.36, a P/E/G ratio of 3.85 and a beta of 0.73. McDonald’s Co. has a 12 month low of $243.53 and a 12 month high of $317.90.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.82 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 175.42% and a net margin of 31.79%. The company’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.19 EPS. Research analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MCD. Robert W. Baird cut McDonald’s from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $320.00 to $290.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on McDonald’s from $305.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $334.00 to $336.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $321.00 to $324.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $336.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $320.87.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,499 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.95, for a total transaction of $436,134.05. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at $453,882. This trade represents a 49.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 3,409 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.15, for a total transaction of $989,121.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 9,675 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,807,201.25. This trade represents a 26.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 7,406 shares of company stock worth $2,150,857. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

McDonald’s 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.