McDonald's Corporation $MCD Shares Sold by Gateway Investment Advisers LLC

Key Points

• Gateway Investment Advisers trimmed its McDonald’s stake by 7.4% in Q4, selling 10,756 shares and finishing with 135,471 shares valued at about $41.4 million.
• Notable insider and institutional selling occurred recently — executives (including Jonathan Banner and Joseph Erlinger) and others sold a total of 71,990 shares last quarter worth roughly $23.8 million, leaving insiders with only 0.26% ownership.
• Mixed near‑term outlook: McDonald’s new product rollouts and promotional push could boost sales, but competition, analyst downgrades and technical weakness have pressured sentiment; the stock trades near its one‑year low (~$283.71) with a consensus "Hold" target of $340.93.

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC decreased its stake in shares of McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 7.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 135,471 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after selling 10,756 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC's holdings in McDonald's were worth $41,404,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in McDonald's by 162.5% in the 3rd quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC now owns 84 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald's during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Park Place Capital Corp grew its holdings in shares of McDonald's by 95.7% during the fourth quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 92 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC raised its position in shares of McDonald's by 1,616.7% in the fourth quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC now owns 103 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Painted Porch Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of McDonald's by 735.7% in the third quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC now owns 117 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key McDonald's News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street expects McDonald’s promotional push and a viral burger launch could help offset consumer softness, supporting near‑term sales momentum. McDonald's to report Q1 earnings as value push, viral burger launch may offset consumer softness
• Positive Sentiment: New product activity: McDonald’s rolled out six permanent specialty drinks and other menu items this week—initiatives that can boost guest counts and AUVs if adoption continues. A Look At McDonald's (MCD) Valuation As New Specialty Drinks And Restaurant Changes Gain Attention
• Positive Sentiment: Market pricing and previews point to an earnings beat potential—consensus estimates (and some prediction markets) are optimistic on EPS and revenue, which could lead to a relief rally if results beat. McDonald's earnings preview: prediction markets betting big on a beat
• Neutral Sentiment: Traders are actively pricing CEO comments into short-term markets—wording around loyalty, pricing and “Big Arch” promotions could move sentiment but outcomes are uncertain. McDonald's Earnings Prediction Market Preview: What Will Chris Kempczinski Say?
• Neutral Sentiment: Dividend/income focus: coverage reminding investors of MCD’s 2.6% yield and buyback history—supports long-term investor demand but not a short‑term catalyst around earnings. How To Earn $500 A Month From McDonald's Stock Ahead Of Q1 Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Competition: Burger King reported a strong U.S. comp‑sales gain, signaling share pressure in the category and raising risk that McDonald’s traffic or mix could underperform. How Burger King's turnaround is taking a bite out of McDonald's
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst caution: Erste Group downgraded MCD to Hold, citing middling profit growth and a sideways medium‑term outlook—pressure on sentiment ahead of the print. Erste Group Turns Cautious on McDonald’s (MCD), Downgrades to Hold
• Negative Sentiment: Price momentum: coverage notes MCD hit 52‑week lows and has seen a pullback since its February highs—technical weakness can amplify downside if earnings disappoint. McDonald's Stock Hits 52-Week Low Ahead of Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Reputational/customer pushback: reports about removing self‑serve soda machines and other changes have generated negative customer headlines that could temper same‑store traffic if broadly disliked. Why McDonald's is getting rid of self-serve soda machines

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on MCD shares. Tigress Financial raised their target price on shares of McDonald's from $360.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Guggenheim cut their price target on McDonald's from $325.00 to $320.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 13th. TD Cowen reissued a "hold" rating and set a $320.00 price target on shares of McDonald's in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on McDonald's from $335.00 to $334.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on McDonald's from $305.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $340.93.

Insider Transactions at McDonald's

In related news, EVP Jonathan Banner sold 6,201 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.29, for a total value of $2,066,731.29. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 2,291 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $763,567.39. This trade represents a 73.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 2,626 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.25, for a total value of $854,106.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 5,398 shares in the company, valued at $1,755,699.50. The trade was a 32.73% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 71,990 shares of company stock valued at $23,824,113. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

McDonald's Stock Performance

McDonald's stock opened at $283.71 on Thursday. McDonald's Corporation has a 1 year low of $282.40 and a 1 year high of $341.75. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $312.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $311.57. The company has a market cap of $201.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.74, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.43.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The fast-food giant reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.05 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.81 billion. McDonald's had a net margin of 31.85% and a negative return on equity of 343.90%. McDonald's's revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.83 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that McDonald's Corporation will post 13.17 EPS for the current year.

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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