BLB&B Advisors LLC Increases Position in McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD)

BLB&B Advisors LLC lifted its position in McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 5.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 39,991 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after acquiring an additional 2,239 shares during the period. BLB&B Advisors LLC's holdings in McDonald's were worth $12,492,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of McDonald's in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new stake in McDonald's in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new position in McDonald's in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Fairway Wealth LLC raised its position in McDonald's by 110.0% during the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 105 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. purchased a new position in McDonald's during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at McDonald's

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.52, for a total value of $270,920.28. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 10,222 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,949,251.44. The trade was a 8.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders sold a total of 2,817 shares of company stock worth $865,843 over the last ninety days. 0.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

McDonald's Trading Down 0.3%

NYSE:MCD traded down $0.83 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $293.80. 1,678,645 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,536,052. The firm has a market cap of $210.08 billion, a PE ratio of 25.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.53. McDonald's Corporation has a twelve month low of $243.53 and a twelve month high of $326.32. The stock's 50-day moving average is $306.11 and its 200-day moving average is $302.36.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The fast-food giant reported $2.67 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.67. The business had revenue of $5.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.17 billion. McDonald's had a net margin of 31.75% and a negative return on equity of 195.27%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.70 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that McDonald's Corporation will post 12.25 EPS for the current year.

McDonald's Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.41%. McDonald's's payout ratio is currently 62.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. TD Securities reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $305.00 price objective on shares of McDonald's in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of McDonald's from $347.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $324.00 price target (down from $329.00) on shares of McDonald's in a research report on Monday, June 9th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $345.00 price objective (up previously from $340.00) on shares of McDonald's in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Northcoast Research downgraded McDonald's from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $321.17.

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.