McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD) is Tower Bridge Advisors' 8th Largest Position

Key Points

• Tower Bridge Advisors reduced its stake in McDonald's Corporation by 1.4% during the first quarter, owning 67,824 shares worth approximately $21.2 million.
• Insider trading reports indicate that executives, including CMO Joseph M. Erlinger, sold shares of McDonald's, resulting in significant decreases in their ownership percentages.
• Analyst ratings for McDonald's show a mix of downgrades and a general consensus of a "hold" rating, with an average price target of $322.00 for the stock.

Tower Bridge Advisors lowered its stake in McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 1.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 67,824 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after selling 994 shares during the period. McDonald's accounts for 2.4% of Tower Bridge Advisors' holdings, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Tower Bridge Advisors' holdings in McDonald's were worth $21,186,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of McDonald's during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new position in shares of McDonald's during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. acquired a new position in shares of McDonald's during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of McDonald's during the first quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Copia Wealth Management bought a new position in McDonald's during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. TD Securities reissued a "hold" rating and set a $305.00 target price on shares of McDonald's in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of McDonald's from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of McDonald's from $292.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Northcoast Research downgraded shares of McDonald's from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of McDonald's from $327.00 to $322.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $323.39.

McDonald's Stock Performance

McDonald's stock traded down $3.31 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $300.30. 3,619,632 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,222,961. McDonald's Corporation has a 52 week low of $262.40 and a 52 week high of $326.32. The firm has a market cap of $214.72 billion, a PE ratio of 26.50, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.53. The company's fifty day moving average is $299.68 and its 200-day moving average is $303.37.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The fast-food giant reported $2.67 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.67. McDonald's had a net margin of 31.75% and a negative return on equity of 195.27%. The firm had revenue of $5.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.70 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that McDonald's Corporation will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald's Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald's

In other McDonald's news, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $300,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 8,858 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,657,400. This represents a 10.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction of $281,221.11. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 9,283 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,780,165.67. The trade was a 9.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 3,817 shares of company stock worth $1,147,992. 0.25% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.