First Manhattan CO. LLC. Decreases Position in McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

First Manhattan CO. LLC. cut its position in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 564,683 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 12,473 shares during the period. First Manhattan CO. LLC.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $172,584,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Peterson Wealth Services raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 3,294.5% during the fourth quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 11,779 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $3,600,000 after purchasing an additional 11,432 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 84.4% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 35,510 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $10,853,000 after purchasing an additional 16,252 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Sarl raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Sarl now owns 64,256 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $19,639,000 after purchasing an additional 6,079 shares during the last quarter. North Dakota State Investment Board purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $7,493,000. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 21.9% during the fourth quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 21,487 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $6,567,000 after purchasing an additional 3,866 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McDonald’s Price Performance

MCD opened at $284.16 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $201.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.43, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.41. McDonald’s Corporation has a 1-year low of $271.85 and a 1-year high of $341.75. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $288.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $306.22.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.74 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $6.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.47 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.62% and a negative return on equity of 442.10%. The company’s revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.67 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.93 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 2nd were given a $1.86 dividend. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 2nd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 61.34%.

Trending Headlines about McDonald’s

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

• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s is bringing back its fried apple pie after more than 30 years, a nostalgic, limited-time menu move that could support traffic and generate buzz with customers. AP News article
• Positive Sentiment: Other reports also note McDonald’s has been winning with value-oriented diners, which may help it hold up better than midtier restaurant chains as consumers trade down or seek familiar brands. Yahoo Finance article
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage of McDonald’s reviving classic menu items, updating drive-thrus, and rebuilding older locations is mostly brand/operations news, with limited immediate impact on the stock. TheStreet article
• Neutral Sentiment: A Zacks note pointed out that MCD recently fell more than the broader market, but it did not identify a major new catalyst beyond the stock’s recent weakness. Zacks article
• Negative Sentiment: The biggest headwind is the market’s concern that restaurant spending is fragmenting, which could pressure midtier operators and keep sentiment cautious around consumer discretionary names like McDonald’s. Yahoo Finance article

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 5,252 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.32, for a total value of $1,493,248.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 7,734 shares in the company, valued at $2,198,930.88. This represents a 40.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,763 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.36, for a total transaction of $769,108.68. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 6,268 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,744,760.48. This represents a 30.59% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 11,307 shares of company stock valued at $3,262,622. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $370.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Thursday, May 7th. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, June 12th. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $345.00 to $330.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird set a $305.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of McDonald’s from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $336.26.

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.