Ieq Capital LLC Trims Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Ieq Capital LLC lowered its stake in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 5.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 36,148 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 1,940 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $10,479,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Collier Financial acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the third quarter worth about $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In other news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,499 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.95, for a total transaction of $436,134.05. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $453,882. This represents a 49.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.75, for a total value of $84,225.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,214,275.25. This represents a 3.66 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 21,106 shares of company stock worth $6,368,814. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Price Performance

NYSE MCD opened at $302.89 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $292.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $293.51. The company has a market capitalization of $217.06 billion, a PE ratio of 26.59, a P/E/G ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.74. McDonald’s Co. has a 1 year low of $243.53 and a 1 year high of $317.90.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. On average, research analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 62.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MCD. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. TD Securities restated a “hold” rating and issued a $300.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Monday, February 10th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on McDonald’s from $347.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.61.

McDonald’s Profile

McDonald’s Corp. engages in the operation and franchising of restaurants. It operates through the following segments: U.S., International Operated Markets, and International Developmental Licensed Markets and Corporate. The U.S. segment focuses its operations on the United States. The International Operated Markets segment consists of operations and the franchising of restaurants in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and the U.K.