Heritage Financial Services LLC Has $866,000 Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Heritage Financial Services LLC grew its stake in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 2,921 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 136 shares during the period. Heritage Financial Services LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $866,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MCD. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in McDonald’s by 0.4% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 68,449,565 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $18,032,353,000 after acquiring an additional 262,147 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in McDonald’s by 1.7% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,200,473 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,423,773,000 after acquiring an additional 151,161 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in McDonald’s by 4.6% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,390,035 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,401,570,000 after acquiring an additional 237,532 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in McDonald’s by 4.5% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,593,760 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,209,171,000 after acquiring an additional 199,657 shares during the period. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System increased its stake in McDonald’s by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 3,911,764 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,159,877,000 after acquiring an additional 26,147 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total value of $303,750.72. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 16,977 shares in the company, valued at $4,696,517.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total value of $312,533.62. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,075 shares in the company, valued at $5,140,168.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total transaction of $303,750.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 16,977 shares in the company, valued at $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 Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $273.09 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $281.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $281.74. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $245.73 and a fifty-two week high of $302.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $196.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.71.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 5th. The fast-food giant reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.83 by $0.12. McDonald’s had a net margin of 33.22% and a negative return on equity of 171.96%. The business had revenue of $6.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.45 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.59 earnings per share. McDonald’s’s revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $297.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, January 5th. Finally, Argus reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $318.41.

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.