McDonald’s Corporation $MCD Shares Acquired by New England Research & Management Inc.

New England Research & Management Inc. increased its stake in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 51.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,809 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 2,650 shares during the period. New England Research & Management Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $2,387,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 21.6% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 9,286 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,692,000 after purchasing an additional 1,649 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in McDonald’s by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,942 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $563,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in McDonald’s by 11.4% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,017 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $589,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. United Bank increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 6.0% in the second quarter. United Bank now owns 8,102 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,367,000 after buying an additional 459 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 2.5% in the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 12,938 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $3,780,000 after buying an additional 312 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $309.42 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $219.81 billion, a PE ratio of 25.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.51. McDonald’s Corporation has a 1-year low of $283.47 and a 1-year high of $341.75. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $321.59 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $311.66.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The fast-food giant reported $3.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.05 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.81 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.85% and a negative return on equity of 343.90%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.83 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $1.86 per share. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is presently 62.26%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Jonathan Banner sold 6,201 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.29, for a total transaction of $2,066,731.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 2,291 shares in the company, valued at approximately $763,567.39. The trade was a 73.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 26,277 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.35, for a total value of $8,706,883.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 22,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,587,915. This trade represents a 53.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 71,657 shares of company stock worth $23,722,204 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting McDonald’s

Here are the key news stories impacting McDonald’s this week:

• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s rolled out deeper value pricing and is reportedly launching $3 menu items aimed at retaining lower-income customers — actions that can boost traffic and same-store sales if widely adopted. McDonald’s Value Menu Just Got Even Cheaper McDonald’s reportedly launching $3 menu items
• Positive Sentiment: Marketing tie-ins returning (Super Mario Galaxy Happy Meal toys) provide a low-cost way to drive family traffic and frequency, supporting March/holiday comps. Super Mario Galaxy Movie Toys Arrive In McDonald’s Next Week Mario Returns To McDonald’s Happy Meals
• Neutral Sentiment: Consumer-facing notes on McDonald’s soft-serve/ice-cream mechanics and safety: useful for operations/brand perception but unlikely to move fundamentals unless problems escalate. What You Should Know Before Eating McDonald’s Ice Cream Again
• Neutral Sentiment: Price of the new Big Arch burger varies significantly by location — shows pricing power is uneven and customers see mixed value; informational for revenue mix but not an immediate catalyst. Price of McDonald’s new Big Arch burger varies across the US
• Negative Sentiment: A federal judge allowed two former Black vice presidents’ harassment and retaliation claims to proceed — a potential reputational and legal overhang that could bring costs or reforms. McDonald’s must face Black ex-executives’ harassment, retaliation claims
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts and press highlight a pricing challenge: franchisees set local prices, producing uneven inflation pass-through and promotional participation — a structural constraint on company-wide pricing and margin execution. McDonald’s faces a burger pricing challenge
• Negative Sentiment: Market coverage notes MCD shares have dipped more than the broader market recently, reflecting investor concern about near-term comps, pricing variability and legal headlines. McDonald’s (MCD) Dips More Than Broader Market

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on MCD shares. UBS Group increased their target price on McDonald’s from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Argus raised McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $380.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Tigress Financial raised their price objective on McDonald’s from $360.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $354.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Oppenheimer upgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $355.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $339.69.

About McDonald’s

McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD) is a global quick-service restaurant company best known for its hamburgers, French fries and breakfast offerings. The company develops, operates and franchises a system of restaurants that sell a range of food and beverage items, including signature products such as the Big Mac, Quarter Pounder, Chicken McNuggets, McCafé coffee beverages and a variety of salads, desserts and seasonal menu items. McDonald’s serves customers through company-operated restaurants and franchised locations, and it supports sales via dine-in, drive-thru, digital ordering platforms and third-party delivery partnerships.

Founded in 1940 by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald as a single San Bernardino, California restaurant, the business was transformed into a franchising model after Ray Kroc joined in the mid-1950s and led the brand’s national and international expansion.