McDonald’s Corporation $MCD Shares Acquired by Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A.

Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. boosted its stake in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 986.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 101,887 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 92,507 shares during the period. McDonald’s accounts for 1.1% of Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A.’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $23,530,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ascentis Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 4,008.8% during the 2nd quarter. Ascentis Wealth Management LLC now owns 84,230 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $22,768,000 after acquiring an additional 82,180 shares during the period. Ridgewood Investments LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s during the third quarter worth about $1,026,000. Borer Denton & Associates Inc. lifted its stake in McDonald’s by 16.9% during the second quarter. Borer Denton & Associates Inc. now owns 13,859 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $3,746,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in McDonald’s by 7.1% during the second quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 1,471,725 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $397,822,000 after purchasing an additional 97,060 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Peterson Wealth Services grew its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 3,294.5% in the 4th 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 period. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

McDonald’s News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s increased its quarterly dividend and accelerated the timing of its dividend decision, reinforcing its appeal as an income stock. The appointment of a new U.S. president could also help address softer domestic traffic and improve execution. What Is McDonald’s Signaling With Its Faster Dividend And New US Chief?
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts view McDonald’s compressed valuation, high-margin franchise model and strong cash generation as attractive after the stock’s decline. One Seeking Alpha analysis characterized the shares as an upgrade opportunity. McDonald’s: Same-Store Sales Are An Overrated Metric
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s $8.5 billion “McDonald’s Next” remodeling initiative, including renewed emphasis on customer experience and PlayPlace locations, could support traffic and strengthen the brand over time. The Monopoly promotion, featuring a $1 million prize and digital gameplay, provides an additional near-term marketing boost. McDonald’s Wants Its Franchisees to Modernize
• Neutral Sentiment: Sanford C. Bernstein lowered its price target from $295 to $250 and kept a “market perform” rating. The revised target still implies upside, but the cut signals reduced confidence in McDonald’s growth trajectory. Bernstein McDonald’s Price Target Update
• Negative Sentiment: McDonald’s faces a proposed federal class-action antitrust lawsuit alleging that its AI-assisted pricing tool shares nonpublic sales data and facilitates price coordination among franchisees. McDonald’s denies the allegations and says AI does not set menu prices, but the case creates legal, regulatory and reputational risk. McDonald’s sued over alleged AI-powered menu price-fixing
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. franchisees are reportedly resisting remodeling costs of at least $800,000 per restaurant. The pushback could delay the turnaround plan, pressure franchisee economics and increase execution risk. McDonald’s Franchisees Push Back on Remodeling Costs
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that value promotions are not bringing customers back, alongside complaints about higher prices and smaller portions, highlight continuing traffic and consumer-perception problems.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MCD. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Monday, September 21st. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $335.00 to $310.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. Daiwa Securities Group cut their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $309.00 to $293.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $285.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. Finally, BTIG Research cut their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $350.00 to $295.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $295.94.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MCD traded up $5.84 during trading on Thursday, reaching $236.72. The company had a trading volume of 3,602,911 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,182,015. McDonald’s Corporation has a 52 week low of $229.20 and a 52 week high of $341.75. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $256.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $275.31. The stock has a market cap of $167.51 billion, a PE ratio of 19.25, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.44.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The fast-food giant reported $3.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.32 by $0.06. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.72% and a negative return on equity of 572.06%. The business had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.13 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.19 earnings per share. McDonald’s’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.85 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $1.93 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. This is an increase from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. This represents a $7.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 60.44%.

McDonald’s Profile

McDonald’s Corporation is a global quick-service restaurant company that operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald’s brand. Its restaurants serve a menu that includes hamburgers, cheeseburgers, chicken sandwiches, French fries, breakfast items, desserts, salads, beverages and coffee. Offerings vary by market, and many locations provide drive-thru service, delivery and digital ordering through the McDonald’s mobile app.

The company operates through a heavily franchised business model, with restaurants owned and operated by independent franchisees, affiliates and the company itself.