Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Trims Stock Position in McDonald's Corporation $MCD

Key Points

• Meiji Yasuda Asset Management significantly reduced its stake in McDonald's Corporation by 44.2%, selling 21,415 shares, leaving it with 27,015 shares valued at $8.44 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Several institutional investors, including Vanguard Group and Goldman Sachs, have increased their holdings in McDonald's, with Vanguard owning over 70 million shares worth nearly $22 billion.
• McDonald's recently reported earnings of $3.19 per share, surpassing estimates, and announced a quarterly dividend of $1.77 per share, reflecting a yield of 2.3%.

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. trimmed its holdings in McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 44.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 27,015 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after selling 21,415 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.'s holdings in McDonald's were worth $8,439,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MCD. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of McDonald's by 0.7% in the first quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 35,295 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $11,025,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Caxton Associates LLP bought a new position in shares of McDonald's during the 1st quarter valued at about $368,000. Hamilton Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of McDonald's by 35.2% during the 1st quarter. Hamilton Capital LLC now owns 3,145 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $982,000 after purchasing an additional 819 shares during the last quarter. Sciencast Management LP bought a new position in shares of McDonald's during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,559,000. Finally, Fred Alger Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of McDonald's by 116.8% during the 1st quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 39,688 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $12,397,000 after purchasing an additional 21,385 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MCD has been the subject of several analyst reports. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of McDonald's from $356.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of McDonald's in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Redburn Atlantic reissued a "sell" rating and issued a $260.00 price objective (down previously from $319.00) on shares of McDonald's in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of McDonald's from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, TD Securities reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $305.00 target price on shares of McDonald's in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, McDonald's has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $325.14.

McDonald's Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of McDonald's stock traded up $2.38 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $308.32. 2,760,350 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,547,586. The business has a 50-day moving average of $304.80 and a 200 day moving average of $306.60. McDonald's Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $276.53 and a fifty-two week high of $326.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $220.02 billion, a PE ratio of 26.42, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.50.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The fast-food giant reported $3.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.04. McDonald's had a net margin of 32.21% and a negative return on equity of 225.52%. The company had revenue of $6.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.97 EPS. McDonald's's revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that McDonald's Corporation will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald's Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.67%.

Insider Activity at McDonald's

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 9,283 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,780,165.67. This trade represents a 9.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total transaction of $315,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 6,858 shares in the company, valued at $2,160,270. This trade represents a 12.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 8,341 shares of company stock valued at $2,544,327. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

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.