McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD) Shares Sold by Gulf International Bank UK Ltd

Key Points

• Gulf International Bank UK Ltd reduced its stake in McDonald's Corporation by 26.8% in Q1, holding 40,892 shares valued at approximately $12.77 million.
• Insider sales included Joseph M. Erlinger and Desiree Ralls-Morrison, who sold 939 and 2,487 shares respectively, reflecting a decrease in their holdings.
• McDonald's achieved $3.19 EPS in its latest quarterly earnings, surpassing expectations, while announcing a quarterly dividend of $1.77 per share.

Gulf International Bank UK Ltd cut its stake in shares of McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 26.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 40,892 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after selling 14,976 shares during the quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd's holdings in McDonald's were worth $12,773,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MCD. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in McDonald's by 0.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 70,409,095 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $21,993,689,000 after purchasing an additional 239,753 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in McDonald's by 5.2% in 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 purchasing an additional 531,070 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings 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 valued at $2,570,511,000 after purchasing an additional 895,896 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in McDonald's by 11.2% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,019,019 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $1,454,963,000 after purchasing an additional 504,085 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in McDonald's by 19.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,982,825 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $1,556,485,000 after purchasing an additional 815,768 shares in the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MCD has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup upped their price target on McDonald's from $364.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised McDonald's from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $345.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on McDonald's from $356.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. BTIG Research reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of McDonald's in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $335.00 price objective (up previously from $325.00) on shares of McDonald's in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $326.87.

McDonald's Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of McDonald's stock traded up $3.57 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $308.64. 4,698,548 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,468,737. McDonald's Corporation has a 1 year low of $271.85 and a 1 year high of $326.32. The business has a 50-day moving average of $298.03 and a 200-day moving average of $304.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $220.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.45, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.52.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The fast-food giant reported $3.19 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.15 by $0.04. McDonald's had a negative return on equity of 225.52% and a net margin of 32.21%. The company had revenue of $6.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.97 earnings per share. McDonald's's quarterly revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that McDonald's Corporation will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald's Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued 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 yield of 2.3%. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald's

In other McDonald's news, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 976 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.50, for a total value of $296,216.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 7,882 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,392,187. This trade represents a 11.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,487 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total value of $770,970.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 8,754 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,713,740. This trade represents a 22.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 7,280 shares of company stock valued at $2,215,178. 0.25% of the stock is owned by company 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.