McDonald’s Corporation $MCD Shares Acquired by Czech National Bank

Czech National Bank lifted its holdings in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 202,237 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 8,285 shares during the period. Czech National Bank’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $54,667,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MCD. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. DecisionPoint Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 1,616.7% in the fourth quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC now owns 103 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore set a $320.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. KeyCorp cut their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $315.00 to $305.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $380.00 to $350.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 8th. Tigress Financial increased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $385.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $285.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $325.44.

McDonald’s Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of MCD opened at $276.05 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $196.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 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. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $274.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $296.58.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The fast-food giant reported $3.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.32 by $0.06. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.72% and a negative return on equity of 512.80%. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.13 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.19 earnings per share. McDonald’s’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be paid a $1.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is presently 60.44%.

Key Stories Impacting McDonald’s

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

• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly profit exceeded expectations. McDonald’s reported adjusted earnings of $3.38 per share, above the $3.32 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 3.7% year over year to $7.10 billion. The earnings beat and 31.7% net margin provide support for the stock. McDonald’s posts strong second quarter profit, names new leader for US market
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support and income appeal remain intact. BTIG reaffirmed its Buy rating with a $350 price target, while the stock’s dividend and consensus Moderate Buy view may attract investors after the recent weakness. BTIG rating reaffirmed
• Positive Sentiment: Management is taking corrective action. McDonald’s appointed a new U.S. leader and is reviewing value offers, digital promotions, restaurant workloads and marketing execution. Stronger international performance could help offset domestic softness. MCD Q2 Earnings Call Flags U.S. Execution Gaps
• Neutral Sentiment: Price targets were reduced but remain above the current level. Morgan Stanley, RBC and Baird lowered their targets to $319, $295 and $285, respectively, citing a more cautious near-term outlook. Their ratings range from Equal Weight to Neutral. Analyst price-target changes
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. growth remains the central concern. Domestic comparable sales rose only 0.8% in the second quarter, and management acknowledged that the current value menu is too complicated and that reduced digital discounts have hurt traffic. Lower-income customers are also spending less at McDonald’s. McDonald’s Looks to Fix a Value Misfire
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive pressure is increasing. Burger King is gaining U.S. sales momentum after revamping its Whopper, while McDonald’s expansion toward 50,000 restaurants is taking longer than planned because of economic conditions. Burger King’s US sales surge while McDonald’s growth flails

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

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

About McDonald’s

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.