Welch & Forbes LLC Sells 1,566 Shares of McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Welch & Forbes LLC reduced its stake in shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 310,967 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 1,566 shares during the quarter. McDonald’s accounts for 1.1% of Welch & Forbes LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $90,855,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. HFM Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s during the 1st quarter worth $26,000. Nova Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in McDonald’s during the 1st quarter worth $26,000. GFG Capital LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Abound Financial LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s during the 1st quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in McDonald’s during the 1st quarter worth $31,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on MCD shares. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on McDonald’s in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $320.00 price target for the company. Barclays increased their price target on McDonald’s from $360.00 to $362.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on McDonald’s from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on McDonald’s from $350.00 to $340.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on McDonald’s from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $323.43.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of MCD opened at $298.44 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $305.70 and a 200-day moving average of $305.46. The company has a market cap of $212.97 billion, a PE ratio of 25.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.50. McDonald’s Corporation has a one year low of $276.53 and a one year high of $326.32.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The fast-food giant reported $3.19 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $6.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 225.52% and a net margin of 32.21%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.97 EPS. Analysts expect that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.86 per share. This is an increase from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 1st. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,487 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total transaction of $770,970.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 8,754 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,713,740. The trade was a 22.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 1,000 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total value of $315,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 6,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,160,270. This trade represents a 12.73% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 4,487 shares of company stock worth $1,395,970. Insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Company 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.