Verus Capital Partners LLC Sells 2,500 Shares of McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Verus Capital Partners LLC lowered its stake in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 37.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,214 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 2,500 shares during the period. Verus Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $1,310,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in McDonald’s by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,750 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $535,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Encompass More Asset Management raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Encompass More Asset Management now owns 2,120 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $648,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Richmond Investment Services LLC raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Richmond Investment Services LLC now owns 2,278 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $696,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Papamarkou Wellner Asset Management inc. lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Papamarkou Wellner Asset Management inc. now owns 8,809 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,692,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the period. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 2,102 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $642,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Unusually heavy call-option activity suggests some traders are positioning for upside. Investors purchased 32,245 calls, approximately 45% above the average volume of 22,241 calls.
• Positive Sentiment: Technical analyst Jay Woods said McDonald’s chart is beginning to form a potential buy signal, which could attract bargain hunters after the stock’s recent correction. CNBC article
• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s continues to appeal to income-focused investors after declaring a quarterly dividend of $1.86 per share. Analysts also maintain a consensus “moderate buy” recommendation. Dividend strength and softer sales expectations Consensus recommendation
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are focused on value meals, menu innovation, digital promotions, same-store sales, margins and management’s outlook when McDonald’s reports second-quarter results. Q2 earnings factors
• Negative Sentiment: Mizuho lowered its price target from $300 to $290 and assigned a “neutral” rating, signaling limited conviction despite implied upside from current levels.
• Negative Sentiment: The stock has remained below its 200-week moving average for the longest stretch since 2003, highlighting persistent technical weakness. Barchart technical analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts expect softer sales and weaker earnings, particularly as lower-income consumers remain pressured. That caution could limit gains before the earnings release. McDonald’s stock ahead of August 4 earnings

McDonald’s Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE MCD opened at $270.83 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $274.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $297.69. The company has a market capitalization of $192.43 billion, a PE ratio of 22.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.41. McDonald’s Corporation has a 12 month low of $260.96 and a 12 month high of $341.75.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.09. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 442.10% and a net margin of 31.62%.The firm had revenue of $6.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.47 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.67 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be given a $1.86 dividend. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Cfra upgraded McDonald’s to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Tigress Financial boosted their price objective on McDonald’s from $385.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $325.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Evercore set a $320.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $331.92.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 5,252 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.32, for a total value of $1,493,248.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 7,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,198,930.88. This represents a 40.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,763 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.36, for a total transaction of $769,108.68. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 6,268 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,744,760.48. This represents a 30.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 8,348 shares of company stock worth $2,355,634 over the last quarter. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.