Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. Trims Stake in McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. lowered its position in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 36.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,925 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 5,029 shares during the period. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $2,608,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MCD. Nova Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the first quarter valued at $26,000. HFM Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. GFG Capital LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in McDonald’s during the first quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, 1248 Management LLC purchased a new stake in McDonald’s in the first quarter worth about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCD has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, October 31st. Bank of America lowered their price objective on McDonald’s from $327.00 to $322.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Barclays dropped their target price on McDonald’s from $362.00 to $358.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Piper Sandler restated a “neutral” rating and set a $325.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, BTIG Research reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $323.91.

McDonald’s Trading Up 0.4%

McDonald’s stock opened at $299.71 on Friday. McDonald’s Corporation has a 12 month low of $276.53 and a 12 month high of $326.32. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $304.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $305.04. The firm has a market cap of $213.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.68, a PEG ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.50.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The fast-food giant reported $3.22 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.33 by ($0.11). McDonald’s had a net margin of 32.21% and a negative return on equity of 225.52%. The business had revenue of $7.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.10 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.23 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.86 per share. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. This is a boost from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 63.48%.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, EVP Manuel Jm Steijaert sold 13,134 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.42, for a total transaction of $3,945,716.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 4,606 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,383,734.52. The trade was a 74.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jonathan Banner sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 99 shares in the company, valued at $30,690. The trade was a 90.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 15,134 shares of company stock worth $4,570,716 over the last three months. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.