AXQ Capital LP Purchases New Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

AXQ Capital LP purchased a new stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 3,806 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock, valued at approximately $1,103,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Collier Financial purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $305.07 on Friday. McDonald’s Co. has a 12-month low of $243.53 and a 12-month high of $326.32. The company has a market cap of $217.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.78, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $298.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $297.38.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.32%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 62.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,499 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $453,882. This represents a 49.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.10, for a total transaction of $319,918.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 8,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,383,235.70. The trade was a 11.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 33,504 shares of company stock valued at $10,206,575 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCD has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays boosted their price target on McDonald’s from $347.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Loop Capital reissued a “buy” rating and set a $342.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on McDonald’s from $336.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.39.

About McDonald’s

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.