Bridgewater Advisors Inc. Makes New Investment in McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD)

Bridgewater Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 7,083 shares of the fast-food giant's stock, valued at approximately $2,228,000.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in McDonald's by 3.5% during the 1st quarter. Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC now owns 988 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $309,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC grew its holdings in shares of McDonald's by 1.9% during the first quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 1,793 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $560,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Consilium Wealth Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of McDonald's by 2.5% in the first quarter. Consilium Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 1,334 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $417,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Northeast Financial Consultants Inc raised its holdings in shares of McDonald's by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Northeast Financial Consultants Inc now owns 7,486 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $2,170,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tealwood Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of McDonald's by 0.4% in the first quarter. Tealwood Asset Management Inc. now owns 8,117 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $2,535,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company's stock.

McDonald's Stock Performance

MCD stock traded down $0.91 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $298.71. 2,804,555 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,529,959. McDonald's Corporation has a one year low of $246.12 and a one year high of $326.32. The company has a market cap of $213.59 billion, a PE ratio of 26.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.53. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $303.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $302.60.

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

McDonald's Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were given a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.37%. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio is currently 62.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCD has been the subject of several research reports. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of McDonald's from $292.00 to $314.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Argus downgraded McDonald's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, June 13th. KeyCorp dropped their target price on McDonald's from $340.00 to $325.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 30th. Melius began coverage on McDonald's in a research note on Monday. They set a "sell" rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on McDonald's from $324.00 to $326.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $319.48.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, 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 document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $300,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 8,858 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,657,400. The trade was a 10.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 3,817 shares of company stock valued at $1,165,843. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

About McDonald's

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.