Betterment LLC Purchases 205 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Betterment LLC lifted its stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 17.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,411 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the period. Betterment LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $409,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new stake in McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Collier Financial bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Fairway Wealth LLC raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 110.0% in the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 105 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. bought a new position in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

NYSE MCD opened at $316.81 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $226.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.62. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $308.48 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $299.83. McDonald’s Co. has a one year low of $243.53 and a one year high of $326.32.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 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 expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is presently 62.16%.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $318.50, for a total value of $299,071.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,853,850. This represents a 7.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.05, for a total transaction of $3,255,525.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 32,756 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,155,997.80. The trade was a 24.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 28,136 shares of company stock valued at $8,676,247 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on MCD shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 17th. BTIG Research reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $350.00 to $347.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $297.00 to $290.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, TD Securities restated a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $322.74.

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.