Forsta AP Fonden Lowers Position in McDonald's Corporation $MCD

Key Points

• Forsta AP Fonden cut its McDonald’s stake by 13.3% in the fourth quarter, selling 24,320 shares and leaving it with 158,780 shares valued at about $48.5 million.
• McDonald’s recent earnings topped expectations, with Q1 EPS of $2.83 and revenue of $6.52 billion, both ahead of analyst estimates and up 9.4% year over year.
• The company reaffirmed shareholder returns and analyst support remains mixed but positive, announcing a $1.86 quarterly dividend and keeping a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $334.45.

Forsta AP Fonden reduced its stake in McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 13.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 158,780 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after selling 24,320 shares during the quarter. Forsta AP Fonden's holdings in McDonald's were worth $48,528,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MCD. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP purchased a new stake in McDonald's in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Park Place Capital Corp boosted its holdings in McDonald's by 95.7% during the fourth quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 92 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC boosted its holdings in McDonald's by 1,616.7% during the fourth quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC now owns 103 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new position in McDonald's during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Painted Porch Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in McDonald's by 735.7% during the third quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC now owns 117 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McDonald's Stock Up 0.5%

MCD opened at $279.42 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $198.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.04, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.43. McDonald's Corporation has a twelve month low of $271.98 and a twelve month high of $341.75. The company's 50-day moving average price is $295.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $308.57.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.74 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $6.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.47 billion. McDonald's had a net margin of 31.62% and a negative return on equity of 442.10%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.67 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that McDonald's Corporation will post 12.93 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald's Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 2nd will be paid a $1.86 dividend. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 2nd. McDonald's's payout ratio is presently 61.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on MCD. Weiss Ratings cut shares of McDonald's from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn upgraded shares of McDonald's from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $260.00 to $306.00 in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating and set a $370.00 price target on shares of McDonald's in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on shares of McDonald's from $360.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of McDonald's from $355.00 to $320.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 8th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $334.45.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McDonald's news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 2,626 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.00, for a total value of $806,182.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,400 shares in the company, valued at $2,578,800. The trade was a 23.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 5,918 shares of company stock valued at $1,862,485 in the last 90 days. 0.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Key Stories Impacting McDonald's

Here are the key news stories impacting McDonald's this week:

• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s recent quarterly results beat expectations, with EPS and revenue both topping estimates and sales rising year over year, reinforcing the view that the company’s core business remains resilient.
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain generally optimistic, with several firms keeping buy or overweight ratings and a consensus price target above the current trading range, which may help support sentiment.
• Positive Sentiment: The company is teasing new marketing tie-ins such as a 2026 FIFA World Cup Happy Meal featuring Squishmallows, a move that could lift traffic and keep the brand top of mind with families and younger consumers. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s continues to attract investor interest, with multiple articles noting the stock is widely watched and that analysts are still fairly upbeat about its future prospects. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: An insider sale by Joseph Erlinger was disclosed, but the transaction was small relative to his remaining holdings and does not appear to signal a major change in outlook. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Several non-fundamental articles, including brand history and vintage-photo features, may boost visibility but are unlikely to materially affect earnings or valuation.
• Negative Sentiment: One recent article highlighted that McDonald’s has underperformed the broader consumer discretionary group over the past year, which may remind investors that the shares still face valuation and performance challenges. Article Title

McDonald's Profile

McDonald's Corporation NYSE: MCD is a global quick-service restaurant company best known for its hamburgers, French fries and breakfast offerings. The company develops, operates and franchises a system of restaurants that sell a range of food and beverage items, including signature products such as the Big Mac, Quarter Pounder, Chicken McNuggets, McCafé coffee beverages and a variety of salads, desserts and seasonal menu items. McDonald's serves customers through company-operated restaurants and franchised locations, and it supports sales via dine-in, drive-thru, digital ordering platforms and third-party delivery partnerships.

Founded in 1940 by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald as a single San Bernardino, California restaurant, the business was transformed into a franchising model after Ray Kroc joined in the mid-1950s and led the brand's national and international expansion.

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