Highland Capital Management LLC Grows Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Highland Capital Management LLC increased its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 657.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 7,245 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,288 shares during the period. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $2,100,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the third quarter worth about $1,394,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in McDonald’s by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,564,359 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,694,403,000 after buying an additional 49,106 shares during the period. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of McDonald’s by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 49,186 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $14,978,000 after buying an additional 2,997 shares during the last quarter. PFW Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,471,000. Finally, Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the third quarter valued at approximately $16,870,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

MCD stock opened at $290.19 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $207.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.48, a P/E/G ratio of 3.66 and a beta of 0.73. The business’s 50-day moving average is $291.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $289.24. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $243.53 and a fifty-two week high of $317.90.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.82 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.19 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the business’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 completion of 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,499 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.95, for a total value of $436,134.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at $453,882. This trade represents a 49.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 7,406 shares of company stock worth $2,150,857 in the last 90 days. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on MCD. Baird R W cut shares of McDonald’s from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $350.00 to $342.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Argus raised shares of McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Guggenheim cut McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on McDonald’s from $340.00 to $336.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $320.87.

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.