Rockland Trust Co. Raises Stock Position in McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Rockland Trust Co. grew its stake in shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 51,170 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,032 shares during the period. Rockland Trust Co.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $13,832,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. DecisionPoint Financial LLC raised 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 acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new stake in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Key McDonald’s News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Freedom Capital upgraded McDonald’s (MCD) from “hold” to “strong-buy,” while BTIG reiterated its “buy” rating. These calls suggest some analysts view the recent selloff as excessive and expect a recovery. McDonald’s analyst upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s remains attractive to income-focused investors because of its long record of dividend payments. Its latest quarterly earnings also exceeded consensus expectations, and global markets continue to provide support. McDonald’s dividend history
• Neutral Sentiment: Forecast coverage is mixed. Morgan Stanley lowered its price target to $319, while RBC and Robert W. Baird issued pessimistic outlooks; a separate forecast highlighted potential upside from McDonald’s loyalty scale and the faster-than-expected rollout of its beverage platform. Morgan Stanley lowers McDonald’s price target
• Negative Sentiment: The main issue is weak U.S. performance. Management acknowledged an execution problem involving the value menu, digital offers, restaurant workload, and marketing—not a flawed overall strategy. Customers continue to demand better value, raising concerns about traffic and near-term sales growth. McDonald’s Q2 earnings call
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive pressure is increasing, with Burger King reporting stronger U.S. sales momentum as McDonald’s growth falters. Wendy’s weak traffic and withdrawn outlook add to broader investor concern about value-oriented fast-food demand. Burger King gains against McDonald’s
• Negative Sentiment: McDonald’s has pushed back its goal of reaching 50,000 restaurants, suggesting that economic conditions are slowing expansion. The end of its Krispy Kreme doughnut partnership also removes a recent menu-growth initiative. McDonald’s expansion plans

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $322.00 to $319.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. KeyCorp reduced their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $315.00 to $305.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $295.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Evercore set a $320.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $295.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $325.44.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $274.39 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $194.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.41. McDonald’s Corporation has a 1-year low of $260.96 and a 1-year high of $341.75. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $274.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $296.42.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The fast-food giant reported $3.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.13 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 512.80% and a net margin of 31.72%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.19 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.87 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. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be issued 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 60.44%.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In related news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,763 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.36, for a total transaction of $769,108.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 6,268 shares in the company, valued at $1,744,760.48. The trade was a 30.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 5,252 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $2,198,930.88. The trade was a 40.44% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 8,348 shares of company stock worth $2,355,634 over the last 90 days. Company 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.