AIA Group Ltd Raises Stock Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

AIA Group Ltd lifted its stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 65.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 20,212 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,960 shares during the period. AIA Group Ltd’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $5,859,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,725,190,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth approximately $703,074,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 43,591.6% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 590,711 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $171,241,000 after purchasing an additional 589,359 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in McDonald’s by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 70,169,342 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $20,341,391,000 after buying an additional 526,466 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI increased its stake in McDonald’s by 518.1% in the 4th quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 348,119 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $100,916,000 after buying an additional 291,802 shares during the period. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on MCD shares. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $297.00 to $290.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on McDonald’s from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on McDonald’s from $336.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $323.61.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In related news, EVP Manuel Jm Steijaert sold 10,459 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.71, for a total value of $3,228,797.89. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,421,918.26. This trade represents a 69.43 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Tiffanie L. Boyd sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.27, for a total value of $309,270.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,720,778.28. This trade represents a 15.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 28,996 shares of company stock worth $8,897,534. 0.23% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

McDonald’s Price Performance

NYSE:MCD opened at $306.95 on Monday. McDonald’s Co. has a 1-year low of $243.53 and a 1-year high of $326.32. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $301.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $298.20. The firm has a market cap of $219.31 billion, a PE ratio of 26.95, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

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

About McDonald’s

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.