Kennon Green & Company LLC Cuts Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Kennon Green & Company LLC lowered its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 12.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,685 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 521 shares during the quarter. McDonald’s makes up about 1.1% of Kennon Green & Company LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Kennon Green & Company LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $1,093,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in McDonald’s by 51.9% in the third quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 123 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new stake in McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter valued at $45,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on MCD shares. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Barclays cut their price target on McDonald’s from $343.00 to $340.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 5th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $297.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $315.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $318.41.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MCD traded down $0.17 during trading on Monday, hitting $272.92. 1,994,061 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,254,681. McDonald’s Co. has a 1 year low of $245.73 and a 1 year high of $302.39. The company has a market cap of $196.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.60, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.71. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $281.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $281.96.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The fast-food giant reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.83 by $0.12. McDonald’s had a net margin of 33.22% and a negative return on equity of 171.96%. The company had revenue of $6.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.45 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.59 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.34 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were given a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.74%.

Insider Activity

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total transaction of $303,750.72. Following the sale, the insider now owns 16,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,696,517.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total transaction of $303,750.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 16,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,696,517.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total transaction of $312,533.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 18,075 shares in the company, valued at $5,140,168.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Company Profile

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.