Northwest Bancshares Inc. Decreases Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Northwest Bancshares Inc. decreased its position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 14.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,145 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 525 shares during the period. Northwest Bancshares Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $958,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MCD. Kings Path Partners LLC purchased a new stake in McDonald’s during the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In related news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 11,727 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.03, for a total value of $3,518,451.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 49,885 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,966,996.55. The trade was a 19.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Ian Frederick Borden sold 5,939 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.04, for a total transaction of $1,781,937.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 20,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,121,716.12. This trade represents a 22.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 35,596 shares of company stock worth $10,698,289. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of MCD opened at $290.68 on Wednesday. McDonald’s Co. has a 1-year low of $243.53 and a 1-year high of $317.90. The stock has a market cap of $208.31 billion, a PE ratio of 25.52, a P/E/G ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.74. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $300.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $277.75.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.05. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.79% and a negative return on equity of 175.42%. The business had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.82 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.19 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.44%. This is a boost from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 62.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MCD. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $295.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Baird R W lowered shares of McDonald’s from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $296.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $319.46.

McDonald’s Company Profile

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.