McDonald’s Corporation $MCD Shares Sold by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA reduced its stake in shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 481,377 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 5,559 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $130,121,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in McDonald’s by 2.1% during the second quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 55,876 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $15,104,000 after acquiring an additional 1,151 shares in the last quarter. Zinnia Wealth Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 24.9% during the 2nd quarter. Zinnia Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 1,845 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $499,000 after buying an additional 368 shares during the period. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 25,122 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $6,791,000 after buying an additional 724 shares during the period. GHE LLC lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. GHE LLC now owns 11,817 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $3,194,000 after buying an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pinkerton Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Pinkerton Wealth LLC now owns 17,673 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $4,777,000 after buying an additional 633 shares in the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

McDonald’s Price Performance

MCD opened at $265.43 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $273.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $294.81. McDonald’s Corporation has a 1-year low of $260.96 and a 1-year high of $341.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $187.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.41.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued 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. The business had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.13 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 572.06% and a net margin of 31.72%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.19 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.86 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 60.44%.

Key Headlines Impacting McDonald’s

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

• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s is taking direct aim at Starbucks with a menu strategy focused on afternoon traffic. Expanded beverage and snack offerings could help the company capture additional dayparts and improve sales momentum. McDonald’s Takes Direct Aim at Starbucks
• Positive Sentiment: New limited-time fall drinks and other menu items, along with the Hello Kitty and Godzilla Happy Meal promotion, could support customer visits and boost seasonal sales. McDonald’s Has 4 New Limited-Time Menu Items
• Positive Sentiment: An app that helps restaurants fill open shifts has reportedly reduced the cost of missed shifts at one McDonald’s location. If scalable, better staffing could improve service consistency, labor efficiency, and restaurant-level profitability. Missed shifts were costly to this McDonald’s
• Positive Sentiment: A bullish analyst cited a consensus price target substantially above the current trading level, arguing that MCD could offer significant upside after its recent decline. This is supportive sentiment, though targets remain estimates rather than catalysts. McDonald’s Keeps Cratering
• Neutral Sentiment: Xbox-related in-game rewards and other international or promotional menu stories increase brand engagement but are unlikely to materially change near-term earnings expectations. Xbox 25th Anniversary McDonald’s Rewards
• Neutral Sentiment: One valuation review described MCD as roughly fairly valued on a discounted-cash-flow basis, while market multiples suggested modest undervaluation. The assessment offers some downside support but acknowledges weaker recent U.S. sales growth. McDonald’s Stock Looks Fairly Valued
• Negative Sentiment: Commentary on McDonald’s latest earnings characterized the results and execution as underwhelming, reinforcing concerns about soft same-store sales and the effectiveness of recent initiatives. Jim Cramer Breaks Down McDonald’s Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Former Taco Bell executive Greg Creed criticized McDonald’s Red Bull beverage strategy, raising questions about product-market fit and whether the new drinks will meaningfully improve afternoon demand. Taco Bell’s Former Boss Criticizes McDonald’s Red Bull Drink

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McDonald’s news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,763 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,268 shares in the company, valued at $1,744,760.48. This represents a 30.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 5,252 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was 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 directly owned 7,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,198,930.88. This trade represents a 40.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 8,348 shares of company stock worth $2,355,634 in the last three months. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on MCD. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Piper Sandler set a $286.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Tigress Financial boosted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $385.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $325.00 to $305.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of McDonald’s from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. One investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $325.44.

McDonald’s Company 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.