McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Shares Sold by New York Life Investment Management LLC

New York Life Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 15.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 103,171 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 18,734 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $30,591,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 51.9% in the third quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 123 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the third quarter valued at $33,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth $43,000. Finally, Mendota Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of McDonald’s stock traded up $1.39 on Wednesday, hitting $274.43. 4,843,040 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,332,154. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $280.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $282.33. McDonald’s Co. has a 52 week low of $245.73 and a 52 week high of $302.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $197.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.71.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The fast-food giant reported $2.70 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.71 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $6.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.16 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 171.96% and a net margin of 33.22%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.63 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.34 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.43%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCD has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com cut shares of McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Wedbush lowered their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 26th. Argus reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Monday, March 25th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $343.00 to $340.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $317.37.

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.