McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Shares Sold by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC lowered its stake in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 18.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 19,402 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 4,487 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $5,753,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC increased its position in McDonald’s by 51.9% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 123 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management acquired a new stake in McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new stake in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Price Performance

MCD traded down $2.96 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $270.32. 2,639,735 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,321,246. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $280.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $282.21. McDonald’s Co. has a 12 month low of $245.73 and a 12 month high of $302.39. The stock has a market cap of $194.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.71.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The fast-food giant reported $2.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.71 by ($0.01). McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 180.54% and a net margin of 33.36%. The company had revenue of $6.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.16 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.63 earnings per share. McDonald’s’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were given a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $297.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on McDonald’s from $300.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on McDonald’s from $327.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 12th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $305.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price target on McDonald’s from $337.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $317.74.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total value of $312,533.62. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,140,168.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total value of $312,533.62. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 18,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,140,168.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total transaction of $303,750.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 16,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,696,517.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.