McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Stock Holdings Boosted by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 336.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 232,328 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 179,155 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $67,350,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth approximately $703,074,000. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec boosted its position in McDonald’s by 542.9% during the 3rd 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 acquiring an additional 677,139 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI increased its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 518.1% during the fourth quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 348,119 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $100,916,000 after purchasing an additional 291,802 shares during the period. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 3,580.1% during the third quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 268,650 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $81,807,000 after purchasing an additional 261,350 shares in the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

McDonald’s Price Performance

NYSE:MCD opened at $307.01 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $299.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $297.78. The stock has a market cap of $219.35 billion, a PE ratio of 26.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $243.53 and a fifty-two week 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 (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%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued 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 yield of 2.31%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MCD has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Citigroup boosted their target price on McDonald’s from $336.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Loop Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $342.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Nine equities research 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.39.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, EVP Manuel Jm Steijaert sold 10,459 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.71, for a total transaction of $3,228,797.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,421,918.26. The trade was a 69.43 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Tiffanie L. Boyd sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.27, for a total value of $309,270.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,720,778.28. The trade was a 15.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 32,405 shares of company stock worth $9,886,656 over the last ninety days. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by 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.