Forefront Wealth Management Inc. Takes $1.97 Million Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Forefront Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 6,785 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock, valued at approximately $1,967,000. McDonald’s makes up approximately 1.8% of Forefront Wealth Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MCD. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $703,074,000. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 542.9% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 801,858 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $244,174,000 after buying an additional 677,139 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 43,591.6% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 590,711 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $171,241,000 after buying an additional 589,359 shares during the last quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 518.1% in the 4th quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 348,119 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $100,916,000 after buying an additional 291,802 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 3,580.1% in the 3rd quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 268,650 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $81,807,000 after buying an additional 261,350 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

McDonald’s Stock Down 0.6 %

NYSE:MCD opened at $305.07 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $298.75 and a 200-day moving average of $297.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $217.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.78, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71. 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 results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.73% and a negative return on equity of 181.63%. On average, analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 62.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MCD. TD Securities reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Monday, February 10th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $297.00 to $290.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $336.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Loop Capital restated a “buy” rating and set a $342.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.39.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.10, for a total value of $319,918.90. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 8,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,383,235.70. This trade represents a 11.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Tiffanie L. Boyd sold 1,000 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on 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 in the company, valued at $1,720,778.28. This represents a 15.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 33,504 shares of company stock valued at $10,206,575. 0.23% of the stock is owned by company 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.