Impax Asset Management Group plc Cuts Stock Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Impax Asset Management Group plc trimmed its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 5.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,032 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 694 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $3,968,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $6,612,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,394,000. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp boosted its position in McDonald’s by 58.9% in the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 138,102 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $35,194,000 after buying an additional 51,210 shares during the last quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of McDonald’s by 6.5% during the third quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 49,186 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $14,978,000 after acquiring an additional 2,997 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. boosted its holdings in McDonald’s by 17.1% in the third quarter. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. now owns 49,318 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $15,018,000 after purchasing an additional 7,200 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim downgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on McDonald’s from $285.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on McDonald’s from $284.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on McDonald’s from $296.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $319.46.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of MCD opened at $292.52 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $209.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.68, a P/E/G ratio of 3.95 and a beta of 0.74. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $243.53 and a fifty-two week high of $317.90. The business’s 50-day moving average is $300.00 and its 200-day moving average is $277.29.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.82 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 175.42% and a net margin of 31.79%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.19 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $1.77 dividend. This is a boost from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.42%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is presently 58.65%.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.70, for a total transaction of $316,992.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 12,583 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,632,712.10. This represents a 8.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 11,727 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.03, for a total value of $3,518,451.81. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 49,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,966,996.55. The trade was a 19.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 35,596 shares of company stock valued at $10,698,289. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

McDonald’s Company 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.