R Squared Ltd Makes New $3.97 Million Investment in McDonald's Corporation $MCD

Key Points

• R Squared Ltd has made a new investment of $3.97 million in McDonald's Corporation, acquiring 13,589 shares which represents 2.2% of its portfolio.
• McDonald's is experiencing significant institutional interest, with firms like First American Trust FSB and Banque Transatlantique SA increasing their holdings by up to 58% in recent quarters.
• The company announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $1.86 per share, which will be paid on December 15th, marking an annualized yield of 2.4%.

R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 13,589 shares of the fast-food giant's stock, valued at approximately $3,970,000. McDonald's comprises about 2.2% of R Squared Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its largest position.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. First American Trust FSB grew its position in shares of McDonald's by 55.9% during the first quarter. First American Trust FSB now owns 36,917 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $11,532,000 after acquiring an additional 13,234 shares during the last quarter. Banque Transatlantique SA lifted its holdings in McDonald's by 58.0% in the first quarter. Banque Transatlantique SA now owns 248,826 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $71,829,000 after purchasing an additional 91,313 shares during the period. Hamilton Capital LLC lifted its holdings in McDonald's by 35.2% in the first quarter. Hamilton Capital LLC now owns 3,145 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $982,000 after purchasing an additional 819 shares during the period. Welch Group LLC lifted its holdings in McDonald's by 1.1% in the second quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 206,004 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $60,188,000 after purchasing an additional 2,180 shares during the period. Finally, Red Door Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in McDonald's by 1.9% in the first quarter. Red Door Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,724 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $1,788,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,487 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total value of $770,970.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 8,754 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,713,740. This represents a 22.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jonathan Banner sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total value of $310,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 99 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,690. This represents a 90.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,463 shares of company stock valued at $1,692,186 over the last 90 days. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

McDonald's Stock Performance

NYSE:MCD opened at $307.01 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $219.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.50. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $306.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $305.56. McDonald's Corporation has a 52 week low of $276.53 and a 52 week high of $326.32.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The fast-food giant reported $3.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.15 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.68 billion. McDonald's had a negative return on equity of 225.52% and a net margin of 32.21%.The company's revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.97 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that McDonald's Corporation will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald's Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $1.86 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. This is an increase from McDonald's's previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.67%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on shares of McDonald's in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. They issued a "sector perform" rating and a $320.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of McDonald's in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Melius assumed coverage on shares of McDonald's in a report on Monday, July 14th. They issued a "sell" rating and a $250.00 price objective for the company. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of McDonald's from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of McDonald's from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $324.50.

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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