Baxter Bros Inc. Decreases Stock Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Baxter Bros Inc. decreased its position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 18.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,609 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 2,632 shares during the period. Baxter Bros Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $3,365,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. United Bank raised its stake in McDonald’s by 3.5% during the third quarter. United Bank now owns 6,446 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,963,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. Cahill Financial Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Cahill Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,851 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $564,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 66.9% during the 3rd quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 6,324 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,926,000 after buying an additional 2,536 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in McDonald’s by 4.8% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 255,748 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $77,878,000 after acquiring an additional 11,743 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC increased its stake in McDonald’s by 2.9% during the third quarter. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC now owns 15,720 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $4,787,000 after acquiring an additional 447 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

McDonald’s Price Performance

NYSE MCD opened at $305.85 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $299.21 and a 200 day moving average of $297.65. The company has a market capitalization of $218.52 billion, a PE ratio of 26.85, 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.

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 the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. Research analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MCD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $336.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America increased their price target on McDonald’s from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. TD Securities restated a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Monday, February 10th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on McDonald’s from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their target price 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. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.39.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.75, for a total value of $84,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 7,887 shares in the company, valued at $2,214,275.25. The trade was a 3.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,499 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.95, for a total value of $436,134.05. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at $453,882. This represents a 49.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 32,405 shares of company stock valued at $9,886,656. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s 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.