Francis Financial Inc. Boosts Stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Francis Financial Inc. raised its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 5.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,068 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Francis Financial Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $317,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in McDonald’s by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 68,449,565 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $18,032,353,000 after buying an additional 262,147 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in McDonald’s by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,077,338 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $10,169,018,000 after buying an additional 485,066 shares during the period. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in McDonald’s by 106,340.3% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,235,890 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $5,069,234,000 after buying an additional 19,217,818 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in McDonald’s by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,200,473 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,423,773,000 after buying an additional 151,161 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,341,360,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Price Performance

MCD opened at $281.95 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $290.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $280.93. McDonald’s Co. has a 1 year low of $245.73 and a 1 year high of $302.39. The stock has a market cap of $203.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.37, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.72.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 5th. The fast-food giant reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $6.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.45 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 33.22% and a negative return on equity of 171.96%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.59 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.38 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were given a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 57.74%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total value of $312,533.62. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,075 shares in the company, valued at $5,140,168.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. HSBC began coverage on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Wednesday, December 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $317.00 price objective for the company. Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $345.00 to $340.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Oppenheimer reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, January 5th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $273.00 to $299.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, December 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $285.00 to $322.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $320.60.

About McDonald’s

McDonald's Corporation operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald's brand in the United States and internationally. It offers food and beverages, including hamburgers and cheeseburgers, various chicken sandwiches, fries, shakes, desserts, sundaes, cookies, pies, soft drinks, coffee, and other beverages; and full or limited breakfast, as well as sells various other products during limited-time promotions.