McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD) Shares Sold by Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA

Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA cut its stake in shares of McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 6.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 209,345 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after selling 13,262 shares during the period. McDonald's makes up 1.5% of Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA's holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA's holdings in McDonald's were worth $64,199,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MCD. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in shares of McDonald's by 21.6% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 9,286 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $2,692,000 after acquiring an additional 1,649 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of McDonald's by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,942 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $563,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Sovran Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of McDonald's in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $520,000. Quent Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of McDonald's by 8.2% in the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 3,321 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $963,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the period. Finally, Fishman Jay A Ltd. MI boosted its stake in shares of McDonald's by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Fishman Jay A Ltd. MI now owns 6,953 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $2,016,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

McDonald's Stock Performance

MCD stock traded down $1.59 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $301.57. 2,424,707 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,506,984. McDonald's Co. has a 1-year low of $243.53 and a 1-year high of $326.32. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $311.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $303.03. The company has a market cap of $215.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.56.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The fast-food giant reported $2.67 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.67. The business had revenue of $5.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.17 billion. McDonald's had a net margin of 31.73% and a negative return on equity of 181.63%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.70 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that McDonald's Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald's Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.35%. McDonald's's payout ratio is 62.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on MCD. TD Securities reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $305.00 price objective on shares of McDonald's in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $345.00 price objective (up previously from $340.00) on shares of McDonald's in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Northcoast Research lowered shares of McDonald's from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. BTIG Research reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of McDonald's in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of McDonald's from $353.00 to $364.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $321.79.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.07, for a total value of $295,850.73. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,161 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,516,496.27. The trade was a 7.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

McDonald's Company Profile

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.