Vestcor Inc Lowers Stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Vestcor Inc trimmed its holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 2.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 48,326 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 1,271 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $14,009,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Boltwood Capital Management raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 1,882 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $546,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Pettee Investors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Pettee Investors Inc. now owns 5,401 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,566,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Modus Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Modus Advisors LLC now owns 9,396 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,724,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Independent Wealth Network Inc. grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. now owns 736 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $213,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Barn Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Barn Wealth LLC now owns 871 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $252,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McDonald’s Trading Down 2.4 %

Shares of MCD opened at $299.40 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $213.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $296.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $296.70. McDonald’s Co. has a twelve month low of $243.53 and a twelve month high of $326.32.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. Sell-side analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.75, for a total value of $84,225.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,214,275.25. This trade represents a 3.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Tiffanie L. Boyd sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.27, for a total value of $309,270.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,564 shares in the company, valued at $1,720,778.28. This trade represents a 15.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 33,504 shares of company stock valued at $10,206,575. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on McDonald’s from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Loop Capital restated a “buy” rating and issued a $342.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Barclays upped their price target on McDonald’s from $347.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Wedbush increased their target price on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $323.61.

McDonald’s 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.