Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich Has $3.16 Million Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 10,900 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. McDonald’s comprises 0.9% of Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich’s holdings, making the stock its 20th largest position. Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $3,159,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 1.4% in the 3rd 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 purchasing an additional 220,365 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in McDonald’s by 0.9% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,082,894 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $4,592,892,000 after buying an additional 128,800 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 0.9% in 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 buying an additional 49,106 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,765,049 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $841,966,000 after acquiring an additional 19,867 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 31,151.1% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,319,142 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $706,202,000 after acquiring an additional 2,311,721 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.75, for a total transaction of $84,225.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 7,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,214,275.25. This represents a 3.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 3,409 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 30th. The stock was 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 $2,807,201.25. This trade represents a 26.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 7,406 shares of company stock valued at $2,150,857 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of MCD stock opened at $310.16 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $222.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.23, a PEG ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.74. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $291.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $291.56. McDonald’s Co. has a 12 month low of $243.53 and a 12 month high of $317.90.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.79% and a negative return on equity of 175.42%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 62.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on MCD. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Guggenheim cut McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $290.00 to $285.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on McDonald’s from $336.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, 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. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.61.

About McDonald’s

McDonald’s Corp. engages in the operation and franchising of restaurants. It operates through the following segments: U.S., International Operated Markets, and International Developmental Licensed Markets and Corporate. The U.S. segment focuses its operations on the United States. The International Operated Markets segment consists of operations and the franchising of restaurants in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Russia, Spain, and the U.K.