Davidson Trust Co. Purchases 165 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Davidson Trust Co. grew its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 4.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,978 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the quarter. Davidson Trust Co.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $1,180,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in McDonald’s by 51.9% during the third quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 123 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the third quarter worth $33,000. Retirement Group LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Bear Mountain Capital Inc. acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth $43,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on MCD shares. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Argus restated a “hold” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Monday, March 25th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $315.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $319.72.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total transaction of $312,533.62. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 18,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,140,168.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

McDonald’s Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of MCD stock traded up $0.10 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $271.08. The stock had a trading volume of 958,218 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,217,726. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $283.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $280.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $195.45 billion, a PE ratio of 23.42, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.71. McDonald’s Co. has a 12 month low of $245.73 and a 12 month high of $302.39.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The fast-food giant reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $6.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.45 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 33.22% and a negative return on equity of 171.96%. McDonald’s’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.59 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.74%.

McDonald’s Company Profile

McDonald's Corporation operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald's brand in the United States and internationally. It offers food and beverages, including hamburgers and cheeseburgers, various chicken sandwiches, fries, shakes, desserts, sundaes, cookies, pies, soft drinks, coffee, and other beverages; and full or limited breakfast, as well as sells various other products during limited-time promotions.