Baxter Bros Inc. Decreases Stock Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Baxter Bros Inc. cut its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 18.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,609 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 2,632 shares during the period. Baxter Bros Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $3,365,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MCD. United Bank raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 3.5% in the third quarter. United Bank now owns 6,446 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,963,000 after buying an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Cahill Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in McDonald’s by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Cahill Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,851 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $564,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 66.9% during the 3rd quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 6,324 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,926,000 after purchasing an additional 2,536 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of McDonald’s by 4.8% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 255,748 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $77,878,000 after purchasing an additional 11,743 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 2.9% in the third quarter. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC now owns 15,720 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $4,787,000 after purchasing an additional 447 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.75, for a total transaction of $84,225.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,887 shares in the company, valued at $2,214,275.25. This trade represents a 3.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 3,409 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.15, for a total value of $989,121.35. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,807,201.25. The trade was a 26.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 32,405 shares of company stock worth $9,886,656 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

MCD stock opened at $305.85 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $299.21 and its 200 day moving average price is $297.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $218.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.85, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $243.53 and a fifty-two week high of $326.32.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.73% and a negative return on equity of 181.63%. Equities analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 62.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on MCD. Erste Group Bank raised McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $336.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Wedbush raised their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Loop Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $342.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.39.

McDonald’s Company 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.