WFA Asset Management Corp Purchases 188 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

WFA Asset Management Corp boosted its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 21.0% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,083 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 188 shares during the quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $305,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in McDonald’s by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 69,049,310 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $20,473,811,000 after buying an additional 599,745 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,684,899,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in McDonald’s by 15.5% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,347,048 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,178,474,000 after buying an additional 987,099 shares during the period. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 141,160.9% during the fourth quarter. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC now owns 5,613,710 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,664,521,000 after purchasing an additional 5,609,736 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,425,674 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,589,073,000 after purchasing an additional 35,639 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total value of $303,750.72. Following the sale, the insider now owns 16,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,696,517.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $265.13, for a total transaction of $291,377.87. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,209,734.14. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total value of $303,750.72. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 16,977 shares in the company, valued at $4,696,517.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,095 shares of company stock worth $1,100,625. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of McDonald’s stock traded up $1.98 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $249.77. 1,055,317 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,418,984. McDonald’s Co. has a 1-year low of $245.73 and a 1-year high of $302.39. The company has a market cap of $180.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.18, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.71. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $262.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $278.52.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The fast-food giant reported $2.70 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $6.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.16 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 180.74% and a net margin of 33.36%. McDonald’s’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.63 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.19 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Investors of record on Monday, June 3rd were given a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.67%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group dropped their target price on McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on McDonald’s from $327.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Truist Financial dropped their target price on McDonald’s from $337.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on McDonald’s in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $288.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price target on McDonald’s from $302.00 to $288.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $313.89.

McDonald’s 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.