Operose Advisors LLC Cuts Stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Operose Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 7.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,854 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 393 shares during the quarter. Operose Advisors LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $1,407,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 70,169,342 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $20,341,391,000 after purchasing an additional 526,466 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of McDonald’s by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 16,074,438 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $4,652,768,000 after buying an additional 157,458 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth about $2,725,190,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in McDonald’s by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,803,833 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,682,473,000 after acquiring an additional 52,195 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,694,202 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,650,692,000 after purchasing an additional 129,843 shares during the period. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of MCD stock opened at $316.12 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $225.86 billion, a PE ratio of 27.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.62. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $306.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $299.09. McDonald’s Co. has a 1 year low of $243.53 and a 1 year high of $326.32.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 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%. Equities research analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.05, for a total value of $3,255,525.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 32,756 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,155,997.80. This trade represents a 24.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Tiffanie L. Boyd sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.27, for a total value 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 quarter, insiders have sold 27,497 shares of company stock valued at $8,461,400. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $342.00 to $340.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Erste Group Bank upgraded McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, 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, February 11th. Nine investment 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $322.87.

McDonald’s Profile

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.