Ethos Financial Group LLC Purchases 1,097 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Ethos Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 35.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,220 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,097 shares during the quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $1,223,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the third quarter worth $25,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCD has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $336.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Loop Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $342.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $323.61.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of MCD stock opened at $307.58 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $219.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.00, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $294.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $295.91. McDonald’s Co. has a 52 week low of $243.53 and a 52 week high of $317.90.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.73% and a negative return on equity of 181.63%. Sell-side analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.05, for a total value of $3,255,525.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 32,756 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,155,997.80. The trade was a 24.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Tiffanie L. Boyd sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.27, for a total transaction of $309,270.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,720,778.28. This represents a 15.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 33,504 shares of company stock valued at $10,206,575 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Profile

McDonald’s Corp. engages in the operation and franchising of restaurants. It operates through the following segments: U.S., International Operated Markets, and International Developmental Licensed Markets and Corporate. The U.S. segment focuses its operations on the United States. The International Operated Markets segment consists of operations and the franchising of restaurants in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and the U.K.