Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Raises Position in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 1.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 321,535 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,179 shares during the quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $100,438,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Beacon Capital Management LLC raised its position in McDonald’s by 6.0% in the 1st quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 906 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $283,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Grandview Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 26.4% during the first quarter. Grandview Asset Management LLC now owns 1,157 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $361,000 after buying an additional 242 shares during the period. Kiley Juergens Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 2.3% in the first quarter. Kiley Juergens Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,006 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $3,438,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its stake in McDonald’s by 2.7% in the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 83,946 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $26,222,000 after acquiring an additional 2,245 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its position in shares of McDonald’s by 40.0% in the 1st quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 17,809 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $5,563,000 after purchasing an additional 5,086 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Citigroup lifted their price target on McDonald’s from $353.00 to $364.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays increased their price objective on McDonald’s from $347.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Northcoast Research lowered McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $321.79.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.07, for a total transaction of $295,850.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 11,161 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,516,496.27. This represents a 7.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

McDonald’s Stock Down 1.1%

NYSE MCD opened at $289.24 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $206.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.53, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.56. McDonald’s Corporation has a 52-week low of $243.53 and a 52-week high of $326.32. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $311.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $302.86.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The fast-food giant reported $2.67 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 195.27% and a net margin of 31.75%. The company had revenue of $5.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.17 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.70 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.49%.

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.