McDonald's Corporation $MCD Shares Acquired by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group increased its McDonald’s stake by 0.6% in the first quarter, ending with 824,968 shares valued at about $256.4 million. Institutional investors overall still own a large majority of the company at 70.29%.
• Wall Street remains cautiously positive on MCD, with 15 Buy ratings and 13 Hold ratings. The stock’s consensus view is “Moderate Buy”, with an average price target of $338.23.
• McDonald’s has faced mixed recent signals: the stock is trading near its 52-week low and has lagged the restaurant sector, even as it reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings and continues paying a $1.86 quarterly dividend (2.8% annual yield).

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 0.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 824,968 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after purchasing an additional 4,692 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.12% of McDonald's worth $256,392,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MCD. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP purchased a new position in shares of McDonald's during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Park Place Capital Corp grew its holdings in shares of McDonald's by 95.7% in the fourth quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 92 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. acquired a new stake in McDonald's during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new stake in McDonald's during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Purpose Unlimited Inc. purchased a new position in McDonald's during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $325.00 target price on shares of McDonald's in a report on Thursday, July 9th. KeyCorp reduced their price target on shares of McDonald's from $330.00 to $315.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Morgan Stanley set a $331.00 price objective on McDonald's in a report on Friday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 price objective on McDonald's in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on McDonald's from $380.00 to $350.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, McDonald's has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $338.23.

McDonald's News Summary

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

• Neutral Sentiment: Recent market coverage says McDonald’s has been lagging the broader restaurant group and now trades at a discount to peers, with investors weighing whether valuation support, beverage initiatives, and international expansion can offset traffic and margin concerns. McDonald's Stock Lags Industry, Trades at a Discount: Time to Buy?
• Neutral Sentiment: Another update highlighted that MCD slipped even as the overall market rose, reinforcing that the stock’s weakness appears tied more to investor positioning and relative performance than to a single negative headline. McDonald's (MCD) Stock Slides as Market Rises: Facts to Know Before You Trade
• Neutral Sentiment: McDonald’s continues to generate attention with multiple menu and marketing launches, including new limited-time items, a sauce-driven McCrispy update, and BT21 Happy Meal toys, which could help traffic but are not yet enough to lift sentiment decisively. ‘Et tu, McDonald’s?’ Company launching first-ever sauce, chicken snack wrap flavor
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and news outlets also point to McDonald’s strong earnings history and resilient brand, but those fundamentals are being balanced against concerns about slowing relative performance, which helps explain the stock’s weaker tone today.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald's news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 5,252 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 $2,198,930.88. This trade represents a 40.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,763 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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. Insiders sold 8,681 shares of company stock valued at $2,456,440 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

McDonald's Trading Down 1.4%

MCD stock opened at $268.90 on Wednesday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $277.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $301.17. McDonald's Corporation has a 12-month low of $264.53 and a 12-month high of $341.75. The company has a market capitalization of $191.05 billion, a PE ratio of 22.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.41.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $6.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.47 billion. McDonald's had a negative return on equity of 442.10% and a net margin of 31.62%.McDonald's's revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.67 EPS. Research analysts predict that McDonald's Corporation will post 12.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald's Dividend Announcement

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

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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