Whittier Trust Co. Increases Stock Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Whittier Trust Co. raised its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 73,275 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,391 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $21,241,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Symmetry Partners LLC increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Symmetry Partners LLC now owns 1,639 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $475,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Berkeley Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Berkeley Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,667 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,643,000 after acquiring an additional 231 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its stake in McDonald’s by 70.4% in the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 194,797 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $56,470,000 after acquiring an additional 80,467 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in McDonald’s by 119.6% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,790 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $519,000 after acquiring an additional 975 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 318,805 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $92,418,000 after purchasing an additional 1,316 shares during the period. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

McDonald’s Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of McDonald’s stock opened at $306.83 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $219.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71. The company’s 50 day moving average is $297.89 and its 200 day moving average is $297.19. McDonald’s Co. has a twelve month low of $243.53 and a twelve month high of $326.32.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. Sell-side analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is presently 62.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MCD shares. Loop Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $342.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Wedbush increased their target price on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $323.39.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In other news, EVP Tiffanie L. Boyd sold 1,000 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.27, for a total transaction of $309,270.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,720,778.28. The trade was a 15.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $291.10, for a total transaction of $319,918.90. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 8,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,383,235.70. This represents a 11.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 33,504 shares of company stock worth $10,206,575 in the last 90 days. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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, Spain, and the U.K.