Apella Capital LLC Purchases 1,356 Shares of McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Apella Capital LLC increased its stake in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 23.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,199 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after acquiring an additional 1,356 shares during the period. Apella Capital LLC's holdings in McDonald's were worth $2,188,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of McDonald's during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in McDonald's in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA purchased a new stake in McDonald's in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Collier Financial bought a new position in McDonald's during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Pinney & Scofield Inc. bought a new position in McDonald's during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald's news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.07, for a total transaction of $295,850.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 11,161 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,516,496.27. This trade represents a 7.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.25% of the stock is owned by insiders.

McDonald's Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MCD traded down $2.81 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $308.76. 3,810,886 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,498,126. McDonald's Co. has a 12-month low of $243.53 and a 12-month high of $326.32. The firm has a market cap of $220.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.11, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.56. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $312.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $302.34.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The fast-food giant reported $2.67 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.67. McDonald's had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. The business had revenue of $5.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.70 EPS. The business's revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that McDonald's Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald's Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MCD shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of McDonald's from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of McDonald's from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of McDonald's from $353.00 to $364.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Erste Group Bank lowered McDonald's from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, KeyCorp increased their target price on McDonald's from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $326.13.

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.