Focused Investors LLC Sells 3,650 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Focused Investors LLC cut its holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 429,850 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 3,650 shares during the quarter. McDonald’s accounts for 3.9% of Focused Investors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Focused Investors LLC owned about 0.06% of McDonald’s worth $124,609,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in McDonald’s by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,916,980 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $4,833,510,000 after buying an additional 220,365 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of McDonald’s by 0.9% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,082,894 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $4,592,892,000 after acquiring an additional 128,800 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,803,833 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,682,473,000 after acquiring an additional 52,195 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in McDonald’s by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,694,202 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,650,692,000 after acquiring an additional 129,843 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in McDonald’s by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,765,049 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $841,966,000 after purchasing an additional 19,867 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $305.07 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $298.75 and a 200-day moving average of $297.46. The stock has a market cap of $217.96 billion, a PE ratio of 26.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $243.53 and a fifty-two week high of $326.32.

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

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.32%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.16%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.05, for a total transaction of $3,255,525.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 32,756 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,155,997.80. This trade represents a 24.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.10, for a total transaction of $319,918.90. Following the sale, the insider now owns 8,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,383,235.70. The trade was a 11.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 33,504 shares of company stock worth $10,206,575. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on MCD shares. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Wedbush upped their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $297.00 to $290.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Loop Capital restated a “buy” rating and issued a $342.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.39.

McDonald’s Company 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.