McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Shares Sold by Chesley Taft & Associates LLC

Chesley Taft & Associates LLC reduced its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 0.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 28,686 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 230 shares during the period. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $8,961,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mattern Capital Management LLC raised its stake in McDonald’s by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Mattern Capital Management LLC now owns 30,110 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $8,729,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the last quarter. Bell Bank lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Bell Bank now owns 12,699 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $3,681,000 after acquiring an additional 371 shares during the period. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,628,000. Integral Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Integral Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 6,512 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,888,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the period. Finally, Aviva PLC increased its stake in McDonald’s by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 432,406 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $125,350,000 after purchasing an additional 23,024 shares in the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $318.50, for a total value of $299,071.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,100 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,853,850. This trade represents a 7.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Price Performance

McDonald’s stock opened at $311.70 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $222.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.56. McDonald’s Co. has a 12 month low of $243.53 and a 12 month high of $326.32. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $312.49 and its 200-day moving average is $302.34.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The fast-food giant reported $2.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67. The firm had revenue of $5.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.17 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.73% and a negative return on equity of 181.63%. The company’s revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.70 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 62.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on MCD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of McDonald’s from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $353.00 to $364.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Bank of America raised their target price 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. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $347.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $326.13.

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.