McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) EVP Sells $334,755.40 in Stock

McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,099 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $304.60, for a total transaction of $334,755.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $475,176. This trade represents a 41.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

MCD opened at $304.76 on Monday. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $243.53 and a fifty-two week high of $317.90. The company has a fifty day moving average of $292.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $294.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $218.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.76, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.74.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting 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, equities research analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.32%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 62.16%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on MCD. 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. Wedbush raised their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America raised their target price 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $336.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.61.

About McDonald’s

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.