Directional Asset Management Takes Position in McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Directional Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 1,680 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock, valued at approximately $513,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 162.5% during the third quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC now owns 84 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Park Place Capital Corp raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 95.7% during the fourth quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 92 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 735.7% during the third quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC now owns 117 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Davis Capital Management acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the third quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Saranac Partners Ltd acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the third quarter worth $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on MCD shares. KeyCorp lowered their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $354.00 to $345.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and set a $340.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $335.00 to $334.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn upgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $260.00 to $306.00 in a report on Thursday. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $340.93.

Key Stories Impacting McDonald’s

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

• Positive Sentiment: New nationwide value menu and $3 menu rollout should support traffic and AUVs by making pricing more competitive and simplifying promotional offers. McDonald’s new value menu debuts today
• Positive Sentiment: Menu revamp across ~17 items and added “protein” badges responds to shifting consumer demand (incl. GLP‑1 trends) — this product alignment can protect menu relevance and sales per guest. McDonald’s revamps menu across 17 items as GLP-1 use surges
• Positive Sentiment: New promotional tie-ins (Stranger Things Happy Meal) and refreshed beverage/soda items are near-term demand drivers and brand-relevance plays. McDonald’s introducing new ‘Stranger Things’ Happy Meal
• Positive Sentiment: Company added more U.S. restaurants in 2025 than any year since 2002 — a renewal of unit-growth tailwinds after a low-growth period. McDonald’s added a lot of new U.S. restaurants in 2025
• Neutral Sentiment: Some models still target upside (24/7 Wall St. $341 PT) but note execution “cracks” — mixed signals for valuation drivers. McDonald’s Price Target Hits $341—But Cracks Are Starting to Show
• Neutral Sentiment: RBC expects Q1 roughly in line with Street — reduces the chance of a major earnings surprise in the near term. McDonald’s Seen Posting Largely In-Line First-Quarter Results, RBC Says
• Neutral Sentiment: Options commentary suggests retail traders see limited downside and are selling premium via spreads — market participants positioning for muted volatility. Selling A Spread On McDonald’s Stock Could Deliver A Big Mac-Sized Return
• Negative Sentiment: Insider sale: President of McDonald’s USA, Joseph M. Erlinger, sold 333 shares (~$100.8k) — small in scale but visible to investors and sometimes viewed as a mild negative signal. Insider Form 4 filing
• Negative Sentiment: KeyCorp lowered expectations for MCD’s stock price — an analyst downgrade or lower target can weigh on sentiment. KeyCorp Lowers Expectations
• Negative Sentiment: Brand/IP risk: USPTO has questioned McDonald’s attempt to reclaim “Extra Value Meal” as a trademark — potential loss of branding control on a core promotional term. McDonald’s fights to win back ‘Extra Value Meal’ moniker
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory / reputational watch: equality watchdog says work with McDonald’s on sexual‑harassment prevention is “ongoing,” signalling potential reputational or compliance risk. Equality watchdog update

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of MCD stock opened at $302.82 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $317.71 and a 200-day moving average of $311.81. The company has a market cap of $215.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.53. McDonald’s Corporation has a one year low of $283.47 and a one year high of $341.75.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The fast-food giant reported $3.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.05 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.81 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.85% and a negative return on equity of 343.90%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.83 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that McDonald’s Corporation will post 13.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 3rd were issued a $1.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.26%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Jonathan Banner sold 6,201 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $333.29, for a total value of $2,066,731.29. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 2,291 shares in the company, valued at $763,567.39. This represents a 73.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 26,276 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $333.54, for a total transaction of $8,764,097.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 22,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,638,066. This represents a 53.43% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 71,990 shares of company stock worth $23,824,113. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

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.