Financial Counselors Inc. Has $65.82 Million Stock Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Financial Counselors Inc. boosted its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 216,156 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,647 shares during the period. McDonald’s makes up about 1.0% of Financial Counselors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. Financial Counselors Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $65,822,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MCD. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Hara Capital LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter valued at about $44,000. Kings Path Partners LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter valued at about $58,000. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 2nd quarter valued at about $59,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.57, for a total transaction of $328,128.43. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 11,484 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,428,777.88. The trade was a 8.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total transaction of $428,967.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $446,721.60. This trade represents a 48.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 35,597 shares of company stock worth $10,702,754 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on MCD shares. Barclays increased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $296.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $285.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $284.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $319.46.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of McDonald’s stock opened at $295.02 on Thursday. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $243.53 and a fifty-two week high of $317.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $211.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.90, a P/E/G ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.74. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $299.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $278.67.

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

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.40%. This is a positive change from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.16%.

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.