QRG Capital Management Inc. Has $15.46 Million Holdings in McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

QRG Capital Management Inc. lowered its holdings in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 8.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 50,888 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 4,677 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $15,464,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. increased its position in shares of McDonald’s by 142.9% in the second quarter. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. now owns 85 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 162.5% in the 3rd quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC now owns 84 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. GFG Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the second quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Financial Gravity Companies Inc. bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the second quarter valued at $29,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McDonald’s news, EVP Manuel Jm Steijaert sold 6,567 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.50, for a total value of $2,006,218.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,606 shares in the company, valued at $1,407,133. The trade was a 58.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,486 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.00, for a total transaction of $795,520.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 6,268 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,005,760. This trade represents a 28.40% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 45,142 shares of company stock valued at $13,841,169. 0.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, October 31st. KeyCorp lifted their price target on McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 9th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on McDonald’s from $381.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. BTIG Research reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $335.00 price target on McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $328.88.

McDonald’s Stock Down 0.4%

MCD opened at $307.53 on Friday. McDonald’s Corporation has a twelve month low of $278.73 and a twelve month high of $326.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $219.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.24, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $308.76 and a 200 day simple moving average of $305.43.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The fast-food giant reported $3.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.33 by ($0.11). McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 280.89% and a net margin of 32.04%.The firm had revenue of $7.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.23 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st were given a dividend of $1.86 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. This is an increase from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.48%.

McDonald’s Profile

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.