Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC Trims Stake in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC cut its stake in shares of McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 16.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,082 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after selling 1,238 shares during the period. Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC's holdings in McDonald's were worth $1,900,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in McDonald's by 3.5% during the 1st quarter. Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC now owns 988 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $309,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Northeast Financial Consultants Inc lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald's by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Northeast Financial Consultants Inc now owns 7,486 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $2,170,000 after buying an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Pettee Investors Inc. boosted its position in shares of McDonald's by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Pettee Investors Inc. now owns 5,401 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $1,566,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in McDonald's by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 899 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $261,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Barn Wealth LLC grew its stake in McDonald's by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Barn Wealth LLC now owns 871 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $252,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on MCD. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of McDonald's from $353.00 to $364.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on McDonald's from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on McDonald's from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Erste Group Bank cut McDonald's from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on McDonald's from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $324.96.

McDonald's Price Performance

McDonald's stock traded down $1.54 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $307.44. The stock had a trading volume of 2,621,006 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,492,078. The stock has a market cap of $219.83 billion, a PE ratio of 26.99, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $312.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $302.46. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The fast-food giant reported $2.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.67. The company 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%. McDonald's's revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.70 EPS. Research analysts predict that McDonald's Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald's Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald's news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.07, for a total transaction of $295,850.73. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,161 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,516,496.27. The trade was a 7.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.