Founders Capital Management Decreases Position in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Founders Capital Management lowered its stake in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 19.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,984 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after selling 2,144 shares during the period. McDonald's makes up approximately 1.8% of Founders Capital Management's investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Founders Capital Management's holdings in McDonald's were worth $2,806,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of McDonald's by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 70,169,342 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $20,341,391,000 after acquiring an additional 526,466 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of McDonald's by 1.0% during the fourth 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 acquiring an additional 157,458 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in shares of McDonald's by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,652,445 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $3,088,037,000 after acquiring an additional 531,070 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of McDonald's during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,725,190,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in McDonald's by 11.2% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 8,867,193 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $2,570,511,000 after buying an additional 895,896 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company's stock.

McDonald's Stock Performance

Shares of MCD traded down $2.90 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $308.67. 1,480,119 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,489,124. McDonald's Co. has a 1-year low of $243.53 and a 1-year high of $326.32. The stock has a market cap of $220.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a 50 day moving average of $312.49 and a 200-day moving average of $302.34.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last announced 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. McDonald's had a net margin of 31.73% and a negative return on equity of 181.63%. The company had revenue of $5.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.70 EPS. McDonald's's revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that McDonald's Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald's Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.29%. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on MCD shares. TD Securities reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $305.00 price objective on shares of McDonald's in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of McDonald's from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of McDonald's from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of McDonald's from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of McDonald's from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $326.13.

Insider Activity at McDonald's

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.07, for a total value of $295,850.73. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 11,161 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,516,496.27. This represents a 7.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.