Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Purchases 205 Shares of McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. raised its position in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 9.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,327 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $680,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 21.6% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 9,286 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,692,000 after buying an additional 1,649 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,942 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $563,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. SSA Swiss Advisors AG bought a new stake in McDonald’s in the 1st quarter valued at $175,000. Fountainhead AM LLC acquired a new stake in McDonald’s during the 1st quarter valued at $221,000. Finally, AustralianSuper Pty Ltd bought a new position in McDonald’s during the first quarter worth $1,069,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MCD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Morgan Stanley set a $335.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $325.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on McDonald’s from $322.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $323.91.

McDonald’s Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of MCD opened at $305.28 on Monday. McDonald’s Corporation has a 12 month low of $276.53 and a 12 month high of $326.32. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $303.37 and its 200-day moving average is $304.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $217.40 billion, a PE ratio of 26.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.50.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The fast-food giant reported $3.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.33 by ($0.11). McDonald’s had a net margin of 32.21% and a negative return on equity of 225.52%. The company had revenue of $7.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.23 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 earnings per share 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. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st will be given a $1.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 1st. This is an increase from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.48%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald’s news, EVP Manuel Jm Steijaert sold 13,134 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.42, for a total value of $3,945,716.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 4,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,383,734.52. This trade represents a 74.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total transaction of $315,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 6,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,160,270. The trade was a 12.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 15,134 shares of company stock worth $4,570,716. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

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.