Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Has $28.92 Million Position in McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 19,677.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 93,745 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 93,271 shares during the quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $28,923,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Park Place Capital Corp grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 95.7% during the fourth quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 92 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Abound Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, DecisionPoint Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 1,616.7% during the fourth quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC now owns 103 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded McDonald’s from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $370.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Rothschild & Co Redburn upgraded McDonald’s from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $260.00 to $306.00 in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley set a $331.00 price objective on McDonald’s in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Cfra upgraded McDonald’s to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, McDonald’s has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $336.26.

McDonald’s Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE:MCD opened at $286.35 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $203.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.61, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $288.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $306.59. McDonald’s Corporation has a 1-year low of $271.85 and a 1-year high of $341.75.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $6.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.47 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 442.10% and a net margin of 31.62%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.67 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.93 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 2nd will be issued a dividend of $1.86 per share. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 2nd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.34%.

Key Headlines Impacting McDonald’s

Here are the key news stories impacting McDonald’s this week:

• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s is expanding its beverage lineup with custom sodas, refreshers, and Red Bull-based drinks, a move that could increase average ticket size and give the company a new growth lever beyond its core Coca-Cola relationship. McDonald’s Red Bull Drinks Test Brand Perception And Valuation Gap
• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s is bringing back fan-favorite and nostalgic menu items, which may boost customer interest and store traffic by tapping into demand for limited-time offerings. McDonald’s is bringing back a fan-favorite menu item after more than 30 years
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage around McDonald’s major drive-thru change suggests the company is working on operational improvements that could make ordering faster and more convenient for customers. McDonald’s is making a major change to drive-thrus: What’s changing?
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst-focused commentary continues to frame McDonald’s as a relatively well-regarded large-cap stock, supporting the view that investors still see defensive appeal in the shares. Is It Worth Investing in McDonald’s (MCD) Based on Wall Street’s Bullish Views?
• Neutral Sentiment: Stories about “coolest” locations, birthday freebies, and 1980s nostalgia are mostly brand-image pieces, with limited near-term impact on earnings or the stock. People Think This Are The Coolest 16 McDonald’s Locations In America
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage on McDonald’s and Coke having “issues” highlights a long-running supplier relationship question, but there is no clear sign of a material disruption yet. The 70-Year Marriage Between McDonald’s and Coke Has Some Issues
• Negative Sentiment: Questions about whether McDonald’s is adding a $1 fee to drive-thru orders could create customer backlash if the rumor proves true, potentially weighing on sentiment. Is McDonald’s adding a $1 fee to drive-thru orders? Customers want answers
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that McCrispy Strips are being revamped after customer criticism suggest some menu execution issues, which could slightly pressure sentiment around product quality. McDonald’s to Revamp McCrispy Strips After Customer Criticism

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 5,252 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.32, for a total transaction of $1,493,248.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 7,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,198,930.88. This trade represents a 40.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,763 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.36, for a total value of $769,108.68. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,268 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,744,760.48. The trade was a 30.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 11,307 shares of company stock valued at $3,262,622. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

McDonald’s Profile

McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD) is a global quick-service restaurant company best known for its hamburgers, French fries and breakfast offerings. The company develops, operates and franchises a system of restaurants that sell a range of food and beverage items, including signature products such as the Big Mac, Quarter Pounder, Chicken McNuggets, McCafé coffee beverages and a variety of salads, desserts and seasonal menu items. McDonald’s serves customers through company-operated restaurants and franchised locations, and it supports sales via dine-in, drive-thru, digital ordering platforms and third-party delivery partnerships.

Founded in 1940 by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald as a single San Bernardino, California restaurant, the business was transformed into a franchising model after Ray Kroc joined in the mid-1950s and led the brand’s national and international expansion.