McDonald's Corporation $MCD Shares Bought by Welch Group LLC

Key Points

• Welch Group LLC increased its holdings in McDonald's Corporation by 1.1%, owning 206,004 shares worth approximately $60.19 million.
• McDonald's received favorable ratings from analysts, with price targets raised by several firms, including a recent increase by BMO Capital Markets to $360.00.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.77, resulting in an annualized yield of 2.4% and a dividend payout ratio of 60.67%.

Welch Group LLC increased its holdings in McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 1.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 206,004 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after purchasing an additional 2,180 shares during the quarter. McDonald's accounts for about 2.5% of Welch Group LLC's holdings, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Welch Group LLC's holdings in McDonald's were worth $60,188,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. HFM Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in McDonald's in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Nova Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in McDonald's in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. GFG Capital LLC acquired a new position in McDonald's in the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new position in McDonald's in the 1st quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in McDonald's in the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCD has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on McDonald's from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised McDonald's from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $345.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Barclays increased their target price on McDonald's from $355.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on McDonald's from $324.00 to $326.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their target price on McDonald's from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $325.18.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total value of $315,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 6,858 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,160,270. This trade represents a 12.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $299.49, for a total value of $281,221.11. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 9,283 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,780,165.67. This represents a 9.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 6,402 shares of company stock worth $1,973,407 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

McDonald's Stock Performance

NYSE:MCD opened at $297.07 on Monday. McDonald's Corporation has a one year low of $276.53 and a one year high of $326.32. The stock has a market cap of $211.99 billion, a PE ratio of 25.46, a P/E/G ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.50. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $306.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $305.69.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The fast-food giant reported $3.19 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $6.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.97 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that McDonald's Corporation will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald's Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were issued a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 2nd. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.67%.

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.

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