Oxford Asset Management LLP Buys New Shares in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Oxford Asset Management LLP bought a new stake in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,416 shares of the fast-food giant's stock, valued at approximately $410,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Bolthouse Investments LLC purchased a new stake in McDonald's during the fourth quarter worth $653,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in McDonald's by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 20,041 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $5,786,000 after buying an additional 1,072 shares during the period. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new position in McDonald's in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,852,000. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in McDonald's by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 31,269 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $9,064,000 after buying an additional 974 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Analysts LLC grew its position in McDonald's by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 24,228 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $7,023,000 after acquiring an additional 474 shares in the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McDonald's Stock Up 1.7 %

MCD traded up $5.29 on Wednesday, reaching $319.79. 5,558,068 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,563,937. McDonald's Co. has a one year low of $243.53 and a one year high of $326.32. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $308.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $299.93. The company has a market cap of $228.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.62.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.83. McDonald's had a net margin of 31.73% and a negative return on equity of 181.63%. On average, equities analysts forecast that McDonald's Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald's Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. McDonald's's payout ratio is 62.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on MCD shares. Erste Group Bank raised shares of McDonald's from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Wedbush raised their target price on McDonald's from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of McDonald's from $310.00 to $300.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of McDonald's from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Loop Capital restated a "buy" rating and set a $342.00 target price on shares of McDonald's in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $322.74.

Insider Transactions at McDonald's

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.00, for a total transaction of $286,395.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 13,978 shares in the company, valued at $4,263,290. This represents a 6.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.76, for a total value of $962,432.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 9,858 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,964,892.08. The trade was a 24.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 28,136 shares of company stock worth $8,676,247 in the last ninety days. 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.