Arkadios Wealth Advisors Raises Stock Position in McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD)

Key Points

• Arkadios Wealth Advisors increased its stake in McDonald's Corporation by 84.8%, acquiring an additional 10,193 shares, bringing their total holdings to 22,217 shares valued at approximately $6.94 million.
• Multiple hedge funds have adjusted their positions in McDonald's, with GAMMA Investing LLC significantly increasing its stake by 39,039.7% within the same quarter, now owning nearly 3.5 million shares valued at over $1 billion.
• Analysts are mixed on McDonald's with various ratings; while Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs have set target prices between $326.00 and $345.00, Redburn Atlantic has downgraded its target to $260.00.

Arkadios Wealth Advisors lifted its position in McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 84.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 22,217 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after buying an additional 10,193 shares during the quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors' holdings in McDonald's were worth $6,940,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald's by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 16,074,438 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $4,652,768,000 after purchasing an additional 157,458 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in shares of McDonald's by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,652,445 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $3,088,037,000 after acquiring an additional 531,070 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of McDonald's by 11.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 8,867,193 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $2,570,511,000 after acquiring an additional 895,896 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in McDonald's by 11.2% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,019,019 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $1,454,963,000 after buying an additional 504,085 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in McDonald's by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 4,595,245 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $1,332,116,000 after buying an additional 226,752 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company's stock.

McDonald's Trading Down 1.1%

MCD stock traded down $3.31 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $300.30. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,619,632 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,222,961. The company has a market cap of $214.72 billion, a PE ratio of 26.50, a P/E/G ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.53. McDonald's Corporation has a 12 month low of $262.40 and a 12 month high of $326.32. The firm's 50-day moving average is $299.68 and its 200-day moving average is $303.37.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The fast-food giant reported $2.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.67. The business had revenue of $5.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.17 billion. McDonald's had a negative return on equity of 195.27% and a net margin of 31.75%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.70 EPS. Analysts expect that McDonald's Corporation 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 Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be paid a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCD has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on McDonald's from $324.00 to $326.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised McDonald's from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $345.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Truist Financial increased their price target on McDonald's from $350.00 to $356.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating and set a $345.00 target price (up previously from $340.00) on shares of McDonald's in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered McDonald's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their target price for the company from $346.00 to $315.00 in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $323.39.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $299.49, for a total value of $281,221.11. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 9,283 shares in the company, valued at $2,780,165.67. This represents a 9.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $300,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 8,858 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,657,400. This trade represents a 10.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,817 shares of company stock worth $1,147,992. Company insiders own 0.25% 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.