Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Decreases Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd trimmed its stake in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 27.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,140 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 440 shares during the quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $338,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of McDonald’s by 51.9% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 123 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $320.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Friday, January 5th. Citigroup dropped their price target on McDonald’s from $312.00 to $297.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $330.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $319.72.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 16,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,696,517.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total value of $312,533.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 18,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,140,168.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 16,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,696,517.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Down 0.0 %

NYSE:MCD traded down $0.13 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $276.75. 4,006,969 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,254,356. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $282.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $281.45. McDonald’s Co. has a one year low of $245.73 and a one year high of $302.39. The firm has a market cap of $199.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.71.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 5th. The fast-food giant reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $6.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.45 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 171.96% and a net margin of 33.22%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.59 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.33 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were given a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.41%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.74%.

About McDonald’s

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.