Simplicity Wealth LLC Acquires 4,677 Shares of McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Simplicity Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 232.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 6,693 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after purchasing an additional 4,677 shares during the period. Simplicity Wealth LLC's holdings in McDonald's were worth $2,091,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of McDonald's during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in shares of McDonald's during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new position in shares of McDonald's during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Collier Financial bought a new position in McDonald's in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new position in shares of McDonald's in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup increased their price objective on McDonald's from $353.00 to $364.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays raised their target price on McDonald's from $347.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $324.00 price target (down previously from $329.00) on shares of McDonald's in a research note on Monday. Truist Financial set a $350.00 target price on shares of McDonald's in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $345.00 target price (up from $340.00) on shares of McDonald's in a research note on Monday, May 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $321.79.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McDonald's 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,161 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,516,496.27. This trade represents a 7.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.25% of the stock is owned by insiders.

McDonald's Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MCD traded down $0.78 during trading on Thursday, reaching $300.94. 928,313 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,499,349. The stock has a market cap of $215.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.56. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $311.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $302.83. McDonald's Co. has a 52-week low of $243.53 and a 52-week high of $326.32.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The fast-food giant reported $2.67 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.67. The business had revenue of $5.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.17 billion. McDonald's had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. The company's revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.70 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that McDonald's Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald's Announces Dividend

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 given a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.35%. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.49%.

McDonald's 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.