Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Reduces Stock Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lowered its stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 6.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,842 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 2,716 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $11,260,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth approximately $703,074,000. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec boosted its holdings in McDonald’s by 542.9% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 801,858 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $244,174,000 after purchasing an additional 677,139 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in McDonald’s by 43,591.6% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 590,711 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $171,241,000 after purchasing an additional 589,359 shares during the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new stake in McDonald’s in the third quarter worth approximately $121,254,000. Finally, Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI boosted its holdings in McDonald’s by 518.1% in the fourth quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 348,119 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $100,916,000 after purchasing an additional 291,802 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McDonald’s news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.05, for a total value of $3,255,525.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 32,756 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,155,997.80. This trade represents a 24.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Tiffanie L. Boyd sold 1,000 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.27, for a total transaction of $309,270.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,720,778.28. The trade was a 15.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 33,504 shares of company stock valued at $10,206,575 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $303.60 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $216.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.66, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $297.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $297.13. McDonald’s Co. has a 52-week low of $243.53 and a 52-week high of $326.32.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.73% and a negative return on equity of 181.63%. As a group, analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.33%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 62.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MCD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $297.00 to $290.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. TD Securities reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Loop Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $342.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.39.

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.