McDonald's Corporation $MCD Stake Increased by QRG Capital Management Inc.

Key Points

• QRG Capital boosted its McDonald's stake by 72.8% in Q4 to 87,920 shares, valued at about $26.9 million, and institutional investors now own roughly 70.29% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: the consensus rating is "Hold" with an average price target of $340.93 (16 Buys, 15 Holds, 1 Sell), while several firms have recently raised targets and a few have cut them.
• Insiders have been net sellers recently — CEO Christopher Kempczinski sold 26,276 shares (~$8.76M) and insiders sold about 71,990 shares worth ~$23.8M over the last three months; McDonald's pays a quarterly dividend of $1.86 (annualized yield ~2.6%).

QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 72.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 87,920 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after buying an additional 37,032 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in McDonald's were worth $26,871,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in McDonald's by 162.5% during the third 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 during the last quarter. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP bought a new stake in McDonald's during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Park Place Capital Corp increased its stake in McDonald's by 95.7% during 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 last quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC increased its stake in McDonald's by 1,616.7% during the fourth quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC now owns 103 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Painted Porch Advisors LLC increased its stake in McDonald's by 735.7% during the third quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC now owns 117 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCD has been the subject of several recent research reports. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of McDonald's from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $355.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of McDonald's from $356.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Robert W. Baird set a $335.00 target price on shares of McDonald's in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Guggenheim lowered their target price on shares of McDonald's from $325.00 to $320.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of McDonald's from $360.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $340.93.

More McDonald's News

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

• Positive Sentiment: UBS says McDonald’s menu and marketing overhaul should drive a rebound in traffic and profit leverage, which supports an optimistic view on the stock as new initiatives roll out. McDonald's likely to bounce as fast-food chain overhauls menus, marketing, UBS says
• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s is launching six new crafted drinks (Refreshers and “dirty”/craft sodas) aimed at driving frequency and higher check averages — a tangible product push that can help offset traffic softness if customers respond. McDonald's is shaking up your soda run
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst previews and estimate notes (Zacks, Yahoo) highlight metrics beyond EPS/revenue — ticket, traffic, mix and US comps — that investors will focus on when McDonald’s reports quarterly results. These previews keep attention on execution rather than changing the headline view. Countdown to McDonald's (MCD) Q1 Earnings: A Look at Estimates Beyond Revenue and EPS
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader market drivers (geopolitical risk, jobs data, sector earnings cadence) are also pressuring retail/restaurant stocks today, adding background volatility ahead of McDonald’s report. 5 Things to Know Before the Stock Market Opens
• Negative Sentiment: McDonald’s is phasing out self‑serve soda fountains across many U.S. locations — a move that could upset customers (loss of a perceived perk/free refills), increase labor/contact points, or reduce impulse drink sales in some markets. This operational change is getting wide media coverage and could pressure traffic or sentiment short-term. McDonald's is phasing out self-serve soda fountains across the US
• Negative Sentiment: Reporting flags that McDonald’s new hand‑breaded chicken product rollout could create operational headaches (consistency, speed, cost), a risk for service times and margins if restaurants struggle to execute. Why McDonald's Hand-Breaded Chicken Could Create Some Serious Problems
• Negative Sentiment: UBS also warned separately that McDonald’s US same‑store sales could miss consensus in Q1, which is a direct near‑term earnings risk and likely a key reason for intraday weakness. McDonald's Could Miss First-Quarter US Comparable Sales Consensus Views, UBS Says

Insider Activity at McDonald's

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 333 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.72, for a total value of $100,805.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 8,067 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,442,042.24. This represents a 3.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 26,276 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.54, for a total transaction of $8,764,097.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 22,900 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,638,066. The trade was a 53.43% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 71,990 shares of company stock worth $23,824,113. 0.26% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

McDonald's Stock Performance

Shares of MCD opened at $284.36 on Tuesday. McDonald's Corporation has a 1 year low of $283.47 and a 1 year high of $341.75. The company has a market cap of $202.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.43. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $314.29 and a 200-day moving average of $311.86.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The fast-food giant reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.05 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion during 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%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.83 earnings per share. Analysts predict that McDonald's Corporation will post 13.2 EPS for the current year.

McDonald's Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 3rd were issued a $1.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.26%.

About McDonald's

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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