McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Shares Bought by Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC

Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,502 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $1,305,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $703,074,000. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 542.9% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 801,858 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $244,174,000 after purchasing an additional 677,139 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 43,591.6% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 590,711 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $171,241,000 after purchasing an additional 589,359 shares during the period. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 518.1% in the fourth quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 348,119 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $100,916,000 after purchasing an additional 291,802 shares during the period. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $77,417,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.10, for a total transaction of $319,918.90. Following the transaction, the insider now directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,499 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.95, for a total transaction of $436,134.05. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $453,882. The trade was a 49.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 33,504 shares of company stock valued at $10,206,575 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

MCD opened at $305.07 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $217.96 billion, a PE ratio of 26.78, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71. McDonald’s Co. has a 1 year low of $243.53 and a 1 year high of $326.32. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $298.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $297.46.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. 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 report on Tuesday, February 11th. Loop Capital restated a “buy” rating and set a $342.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.