King Luther Capital Management Corp Decreases Stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

King Luther Capital Management Corp reduced its stake in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 6.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,977 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 2,062 shares during the period. King Luther Capital Management Corp’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $7,894,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MCD. Gilbert & Cook Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 20.7% in the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 4,384 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,300,000 after acquiring an additional 753 shares during the last quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 14.5% during the 4th quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,899 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $563,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the period. 9258 Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in McDonald’s by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,796 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $829,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares during the last quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC raised its stake in McDonald’s by 99.3% during the fourth quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 5,892 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,722,000 after purchasing an additional 2,935 shares during the period. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 272.9% in the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 22,983 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $6,815,000 after buying an additional 16,819 shares during the period. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on MCD shares. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on McDonald’s in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $288.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Tigress Financial upped their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $355.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on McDonald’s from $295.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $306.11.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.26, for a total transaction of $371,893.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $387,285.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.70, for a total value of $316,992.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,583 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,632,712.10. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.26, for a total value of $371,893.48. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $387,285.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,193 shares of company stock valued at $1,403,593 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

NYSE MCD opened at $296.77 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $277.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $270.88. McDonald’s Co. has a one year low of $243.53 and a one year high of $302.39. The firm has a market cap of $213.88 billion, a PE ratio of 25.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.88 and a beta of 0.72.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 29th. The fast-food giant reported $2.97 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.07 by ($0.10). McDonald’s had a net margin of 32.25% and a negative return on equity of 178.68%. The company had revenue of $6.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.62 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.17 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.67 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were issued a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.25%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.71%.

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.