Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC lowered its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 4.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,117 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 51 shares during the period. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $349,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth about $2,725,190,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in McDonald’s by 39,039.7% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,497,919 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,092,645,000 after purchasing an additional 3,488,982 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $703,074,000. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $350,935,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in McDonald’s by 11.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 8,867,193 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,570,511,000 after buying an additional 895,896 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MCD opened at $307.44 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $312.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $302.76. McDonald’s Co. has a one year low of $243.53 and a one year high of $326.32. The firm has a market cap of $219.83 billion, a PE ratio of 26.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.56.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The fast-food giant reported $2.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.67. The company had revenue of $5.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.17 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. McDonald’s’s revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.70 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.30%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 62.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $318.50, for a total value of $299,071.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,853,850. The trade was a 7.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MCD has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $353.00 to $364.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $345.00 target price (up from $340.00) on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Monday, May 5th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $324.48.

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.