Jennison Associates LLC Raises Stock Position in McDonald's Corporation $MCD

Key Points

• Jennison Associates LLC boosted its McDonald’s stake by 46.6% in the first quarter, adding 69,088 shares to reach 217,233 shares worth about $67.5 million.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but constructive: McDonald’s has a Moderate Buy consensus rating with an average price target of $336.32, though some firms recently downgraded the stock while others raised targets.
• McDonald’s reported Q1 earnings and revenue above expectations, and it continues to pay a dividend of $1.86 per quarter for a 2.8% yield, even as shares trade near their 52-week low.

Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in shares of McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 46.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 217,233 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after acquiring an additional 69,088 shares during the quarter. Jennison Associates LLC's holdings in McDonald's were worth $67,514,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MCD. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of McDonald's by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,351,127 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $22,112,675,000 after acquiring an additional 703,458 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of McDonald's by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,983,997 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $10,997,789,000 after purchasing an additional 959,140 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of McDonald's by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,038,519 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $5,195,965,000 after purchasing an additional 76,090 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in McDonald's by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 9,474,749 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $2,895,768,000 after purchasing an additional 277,617 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in McDonald's in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,890,438,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MCD. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of McDonald's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn upgraded shares of McDonald's from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $260.00 to $306.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. KeyCorp reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of McDonald's in a report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 target price on McDonald's in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered McDonald's from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald's has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $336.32.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald's

In other McDonald's news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 5,252 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.32, for a total value of $1,493,248.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 7,734 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,198,930.88. The trade was a 40.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,763 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.36, for a total transaction of $769,108.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 6,268 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,744,760.48. This trade represents a 30.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 8,681 shares of company stock valued at $2,456,440. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

McDonald's Stock Up 0.0%

McDonald's stock opened at $267.74 on Monday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $277.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $300.28. The firm has a market cap of $190.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.41. McDonald's Corporation has a 52 week low of $264.09 and a 52 week high of $341.75.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.74 by $0.09. McDonald's had a negative return on equity of 442.10% and a net margin of 31.62%.The company had revenue of $6.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.67 earnings per share. McDonald's's revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that McDonald's Corporation will post 12.86 EPS for the current year.

McDonald's Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 2nd were paid a $1.86 dividend. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 2nd. McDonald's's payout ratio is currently 61.34%.

Key Stories Impacting McDonald's

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

• Positive Sentiment: Tigress Financial raised its price target on McDonald’s to $390 from $385 and reiterated a buy rating, signaling confidence that the stock has meaningful upside from current levels.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst coverage and commentary continue to highlight McDonald’s value offerings, loyalty efforts, localized marketing, and menu innovation as ways the company can support customer traffic and defend sales trends.
• Neutral Sentiment: McDonald’s is expected to report second-quarter earnings next month, with consensus calling for modest single-digit profit growth, keeping investor focus on whether traffic and margins improve.
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent product news, including the new Caesar sauce and other menu rollouts, is generating consumer interest, but the items appear more promotional than clearly material to near-term earnings.
• Negative Sentiment: Articles questioning why McDonald’s stock is at nearly two-year lows and noting a 10.1% decline over the past six months versus a rising S&P 500 suggest investors are worried about relative underperformance and slowing momentum.
• Negative Sentiment: Commentary describing a “McProblem” that is not getting better points to continuing concerns about business execution, customer traffic, or overall sentiment toward the stock.
• Negative Sentiment: One recent piece also urged investors to stay skeptical, indicating that while the stock may look attractive to some value investors, there are still fundamental questions weighing on shares.

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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