McDonald’s Corporation $MCD Stock Sold by Bahl & Gaynor LLC

Bahl & Gaynor LLC lowered its stake in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 2.8% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 511,087 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 14,696 shares during the quarter. Bahl & Gaynor LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $118,031,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Ascentis Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in McDonald’s by 4,008.8% during the second quarter. Ascentis Wealth Management LLC now owns 84,230 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $22,768,000 after acquiring an additional 82,180 shares during the period. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the third quarter valued at about $1,026,000. Borer Denton & Associates Inc. increased its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 16.9% in the second quarter. Borer Denton & Associates Inc. now owns 13,859 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $3,746,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 7.1% in the second quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 1,471,725 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $397,822,000 after purchasing an additional 97,060 shares during the period. Finally, Viking Fund Management LLC increased its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 60.0% in the third quarter. Viking Fund Management LLC now owns 40,000 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $9,238,000 after purchasing an additional 15,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting McDonald’s

Here are the key news stories impacting McDonald’s this week:

• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s is expanding its Uber partnership across 14 markets, adding delivery and digital-ordering capabilities and loyalty benefits. The effort could improve convenience and generate incremental sales. McDonald’s Expands Uber Partnership: Can It Drive More Growth?
• Positive Sentiment: The company is planning a broader beverage lineup to compete for customers’ drink purchases, potentially creating a new source of sales growth. McDonald’s new drinks take aim at your Starbucks order
• Positive Sentiment: A Pokémon Happy Meal promotion featuring toys and trading cards may boost customer interest and near-term visits, although the articles provide no estimate of its financial impact. McDonald’s x Pokémon collab is now live
• Negative Sentiment: Recent coverage highlights continuing U.S. challenges: guest counts are declining and quarterly revenue missed expectations, despite an earnings-per-share beat. A value bundle being tested at 1,900 restaurants could help, but its results remain uncertain. MCD Stock Outlook: Wall Street Eyes a Potential Upside Breakout After Q3 Results
• Negative Sentiment: One analysis says MCD’s roughly 24% rebound over the past month may have limited further upside, citing free-cash-flow figures. Higher Treasury yields may also weigh on stock valuations more broadly. McDonald’s Stock Is Up 24% in the Last Month – Is MCD Near a Peak?

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of MCD opened at $282.11 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $249.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $282.33. McDonald’s Corporation has a 52 week low of $229.20 and a 52 week high of $341.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $199.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.82, a P/E/G ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.42.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The fast-food giant reported $3.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.38 by $0.19. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 826.29% and a net margin of 32.38%. The business had revenue of $7.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.28 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.22 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.91 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be given a $1.93 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. This represents a $7.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. This is an increase from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is 58.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MCD has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Seaport Research Partners started coverage on McDonald’s in a research note on Wednesday, September 16th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. TD Cowen lifted their price target on McDonald’s from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. Daiwa Securities Group dropped their price target on McDonald’s from $309.00 to $293.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on McDonald’s from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Thursday, November 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $297.82.

About McDonald’s

McDonald’s Corporation is a global quick-service restaurant company that operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald’s brand. Its restaurants serve a menu that includes hamburgers, cheeseburgers, chicken sandwiches, French fries, breakfast items, desserts, salads, beverages and coffee. Offerings vary by market, and many locations provide drive-thru service, delivery and digital ordering through the McDonald’s mobile app. The company operates through a heavily franchised business model, with restaurants owned and operated by independent franchisees, affiliates and the company itself.