United Advisor Group LLC Grows Stock Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

United Advisor Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 11.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,778 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 295 shares during the quarter. United Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $846,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 2.4% during the third quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 1,422 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $433,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC now owns 1,686 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $513,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Proquility Private Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Proquility Private Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,472 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,057,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 2.8% in the third quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 1,300 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $396,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Founders Financial Alliance LLC raised its position in McDonald’s by 0.7% during the second quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC now owns 4,980 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,269,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of McDonald’s stock opened at $297.19 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $213.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 0.74. McDonald’s Co. has a 12-month low of $243.53 and a 12-month high of $317.90. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $298.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $276.23.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.05. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 178.99% and a net margin of 31.79%. The business had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.82 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.19 EPS. McDonald’s’s revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.77 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.38%. This is a boost from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 58.65%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MCD. Guggenheim downgraded McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Loop Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $310.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Argus upgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $319.46.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.70, for a total value of $316,992.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 12,583 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,632,712.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.70, for a total value of $316,992.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,583 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,632,712.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total value of $428,967.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at $446,721.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 35,596 shares of company stock worth $10,698,289 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

About McDonald’s

McDonald's Corporation operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald's brand in the United States and internationally. It offers food and beverages, including hamburgers and cheeseburgers, various chicken sandwiches, fries, shakes, desserts, sundaes, cookies, pies, soft drinks, coffee, and other beverages; and full or limited breakfast, as well as sells various other products during limited-time promotions.