Widmann Financial Services Inc. Cuts Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Widmann Financial Services Inc. reduced its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 2.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,731 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 223 shares during the period. McDonald’s accounts for about 2.2% of Widmann Financial Services Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Widmann Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $2,963,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s during the first quarter valued at $444,000. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 7.1% during the 1st quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 6,933 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,955,000 after buying an additional 461 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 19.0% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,499 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,048,000 after acquiring an additional 1,198 shares during the last quarter. Old Port Advisors grew its position in McDonald’s by 4.3% in the first quarter. Old Port Advisors now owns 1,020 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $288,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bright Futures Wealth Management LLC. bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $283,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

McDonald’s Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of MCD opened at $296.01 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $299.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $278.95. The company has a market capitalization of $212.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.99, a PEG ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 0.74. McDonald’s Co. has a 52 week low of $243.53 and a 52 week high of $317.90.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.19 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.39%. This is an increase from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.65%.

Insider Activity

In other McDonald’s news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total transaction of $428,967.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $446,721.60. This represents a 48.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.57, for a total transaction of $328,128.43. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 11,484 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,428,777.88. This trade represents a 8.73 % 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 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on MCD. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $284.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Guggenheim lowered shares of McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup upped their target price on McDonald’s from $301.00 to $317.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Loop Capital reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $319.46.

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.