Lazard Asset Management LLC Trims Stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Lazard Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 19.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,770,088 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 414,453 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $513,130,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Czech National Bank raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 155,388 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $45,045,000 after purchasing an additional 9,258 shares during the period. Aprio Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,023 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $587,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Matrix Trust Co lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 25.2% in the fourth quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 7,485 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,170,000 after buying an additional 1,507 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC boosted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 72.4% during the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 7,549 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,188,000 after acquiring an additional 3,171 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH grew its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH now owns 37,039 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $10,737,000 after buying an additional 644 shares in the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McDonald’s Price Performance

MCD stock opened at $313.75 on Monday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $310.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $300.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $224.35 billion, a PE ratio of 27.55, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.57. McDonald’s Co. has a 12 month low of $243.53 and a 12 month high of $326.32.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The fast-food giant reported $2.67 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.67. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.73% and a negative return on equity of 181.63%. The firm had revenue of $5.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.70 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of McDonald’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 32,756 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,155,997.80. This trade represents a 24.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Manuel Jm Steijaert sold 10,459 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.71, for a total transaction of $3,228,797.89. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,606 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,421,918.26. This trade represents a 69.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 28,136 shares of company stock valued at $8,676,247 in the last quarter. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MCD has been the topic of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Wedbush increased their price target on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Northcoast Research lowered shares of McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $347.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, TD Securities restated a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $325.91.

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.