ProShare Advisors LLC Decreases Stake in McDonald's Corporation $MCD

Key Points

• ProShare Advisors LLC cut its McDonald’s stake by 3.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 30,032 shares and leaving it with 757,568 shares valued at about $231.5 million.
• Institutional ownership remains very high, with hedge funds and other investors holding about 70.29% of McDonald’s stock. Several large firms, including Vanguard and State Street, also increased positions.
• Analysts are still broadly positive on MCD, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $334.45. McDonald’s also recently beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting $2.83 EPS on $6.52 billion in revenue.

ProShare Advisors LLC lessened its stake in McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 757,568 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after selling 30,032 shares during the quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC owned 0.11% of McDonald's worth $231,536,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of McDonald's by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,351,127 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $22,112,675,000 after buying an additional 703,458 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of McDonald's by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,024,857 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $10,643,704,000 after buying an additional 196,505 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in shares of McDonald's by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,757,967 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $1,445,899,000 after buying an additional 286,284 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of McDonald's by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,422,014 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $1,343,501,000 after buying an additional 21,168 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of McDonald's by 36.6% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,396,837 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $1,336,155,000 after acquiring an additional 1,179,244 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MCD. UBS Group raised their target price on McDonald's from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on McDonald's from $323.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on McDonald's from $330.00 to $305.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $340.00 target price on shares of McDonald's in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Argus raised McDonald's from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $380.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $334.45.

Insider Activity at McDonald's

In other McDonald's news, EVP Jonathan Banner sold 6,201 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.29, for a total transaction of $2,066,731.29. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 2,291 shares of the company's stock, valued at $763,567.39. The trade was a 73.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 2,626 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.00, for a total value of $806,182.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,578,800. This trade represents a 23.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,119 shares of company stock worth $3,945,973. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

McDonald's News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: UBS said McDonald’s is well positioned for global market-share gains, reinforcing the view that the company’s scale, brand power, and international footprint can help it outperform rivals. McDonald's Seen Well-Positioned for Global Market-Share Gains, UBS Says
• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s continues to highlight value and menu innovation, including Extra Value Meals and a new under-$3 menu, which analysts viewed as helping the chain regain share among budget-conscious customers. 5 Insightful Analyst Questions From McDonald's’s Q1 Earnings Call
• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s brand-building efforts, including a Nike co-branded sneaker launch and localized menu marketing such as the Spam McMuffin in Hawaii, underscore the company’s cultural relevance and ability to drive engagement. McDonald's Tests Brand Power With Nike Tie In And Spam McMuffin
• Neutral Sentiment: Jefferies updated its list of highest-conviction buy-rated stocks, which may include McDonald’s, but the article does not provide enough detail here to assess a direct stock impact. Jefferies updates its list of highest-conviction Buy-rated stocks
• Negative Sentiment: Erste Group Bank lowered its FY2026 EPS forecast for McDonald’s, suggesting analysts see some pressure on earnings expectations. McDonald's FY2026 EPS Forecast Lowered by Erste Group Bank
• Negative Sentiment: Some recent commentary also highlighted softer consumer spending and reduced dining-out frequency, which can weigh on traffic and same-store sales for McDonald’s. Is McDonald's an Undervalued Dividend Stock to Buy?

McDonald's Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $282.34 on Tuesday. McDonald's Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $271.98 and a fifty-two week high of $341.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $200.61 billion, a PE ratio of 23.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.43. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $303.40 and its 200-day simple moving average is $309.85.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $6.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.47 billion. McDonald's had a negative return on equity of 442.10% and a net margin of 31.62%.The firm's revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.67 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that McDonald's Corporation will post 12.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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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