Cozad Asset Management Inc. Sells 1,719 Shares of McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD)

Key Points

• Cozad Asset Management Inc. reduced its stake in McDonald's Corporation by 19.0% during the first quarter, retaining 7,337 shares valued at approximately $2.29 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC and CVA Family Office LLC, increased their holdings in McDonald's, with 70.29% of the stock currently owned by such investors.
• McDonald's recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.77, with an annualized yield of 2.34%, scheduled for payment on September 16th.

Cozad Asset Management Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 19.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,337 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after selling 1,719 shares during the quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in McDonald's were worth $2,292,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald's in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new position in McDonald's during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. acquired a new position in McDonald's during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new position in McDonald's during the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Copia Wealth Management acquired a new position in McDonald's during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 1,000 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 10th. The shares were 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 $2,657,400. This trade represents a 10.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $299.49, for a total transaction of $281,221.11. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,283 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,780,165.67. This represents a 9.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 3,817 shares of company stock worth $1,147,992. Insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MCD has been the topic of several recent research reports. BTIG Research reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of McDonald's in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Robert W. Baird raised their target price 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. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of McDonald's from $350.00 to $356.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of McDonald's from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $345.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of McDonald's from $324.00 to $326.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $323.39.

McDonald's Trading Down 1.1%

NYSE MCD traded down $3.31 during trading on Thursday, reaching $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 stock has a market capitalization of $214.72 billion, a PE ratio of 26.50, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.53. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $299.68 and a 200-day moving average price of $303.37. McDonald's Corporation has a 1-year low of $262.40 and a 1-year high of $326.32.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The fast-food giant reported $2.67 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.67. McDonald's had a net margin of 31.75% and a negative return on equity of 195.27%. The company had revenue of $5.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.70 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, 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 given a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.49%.

McDonald's Company 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.