Meridian Financial LLC Reduces Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Meridian Financial LLC reduced its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 13.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,302 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 200 shares during the quarter. Meridian Financial LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $378,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the third quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in McDonald’s in the third quarter worth approximately $58,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth $72,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of MCD stock opened at $280.90 on Friday. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $243.53 and a fifty-two week high of $317.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $201.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.66, a PEG ratio of 3.67 and a beta of 0.73. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $292.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $286.97.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.19 EPS. McDonald’s’s revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MCD has been the topic of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on McDonald’s from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $296.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $295.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $321.39.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,499 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.51, for a total transaction of $441,470.49. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $459,435.60. The trade was a 49.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.50, for a total transaction of $321,457.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 9,286 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,716,155. The trade was a 10.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 9,704 shares of company stock worth $2,829,428 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s 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.