Joseph M. Erlinger Sells 1,099 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Stock

McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.57, for a total value of $328,128.43. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,484 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,428,777.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

McDonald’s Price Performance

NYSE:MCD traded up $1.21 on Tuesday, reaching $300.27. The stock had a trading volume of 2,319,945 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,458,272. The company has a market cap of $216.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.88 and a beta of 0.72. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $278.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $270.62. McDonald’s Co. has a 12-month low of $243.53 and a 12-month high of $302.39.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The fast-food giant reported $2.97 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.07 by ($0.10). McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 178.68% and a net margin of 32.25%. The business had revenue of $6.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.17 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were issued a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.22%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 56.71%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MCD. Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the second quarter worth $6,612,000. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in McDonald’s by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 1,180,928 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $350,157,000 after purchasing an additional 15,863 shares during the period. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 411.4% during the fourth quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 7,497 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,223,000 after purchasing an additional 6,031 shares in the last quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp boosted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 58.9% in the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 138,102 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $35,194,000 after buying an additional 51,210 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the first quarter worth about $7,898,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on MCD. Guggenheim increased their price objective on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $275.00 to $301.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $295.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $310.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Tigress Financial increased their price target 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. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $307.48.

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.