Pacific Wealth Strategies Group Inc. Takes Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Pacific Wealth Strategies Group Inc. acquired a new stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 686 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock, valued at approximately $203,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 3.8% in the third quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC now owns 2,129 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $561,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the period. Traynor Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 1.2% in the third quarter. Traynor Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,002 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,318,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. Guidance Capital Inc. boosted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 2.5% in the third quarter. Guidance Capital Inc. now owns 2,421 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $616,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 14.1% in the third quarter. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,067 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $281,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Montecito Bank & Trust lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 4.3% in the third quarter. Montecito Bank & Trust now owns 6,646 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,751,000 after acquiring an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total transaction of $303,750.72. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 16,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,696,517.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total transaction of $312,533.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 18,075 shares in the company, valued at $5,140,168.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total transaction of $303,750.72. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 16,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,696,517.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.23% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MCD traded down $3.89 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $272.99. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 811,114 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,212,605. The stock has a market capitalization of $196.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.80, a PEG ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.71. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $282.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $281.45. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $245.73 and a fifty-two week high of $302.39.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The fast-food giant reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.83 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $6.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.45 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 171.96% and a net margin of 33.22%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.59 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.33 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were given a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $330.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Bank of America increased their price target on McDonald’s from $291.00 to $341.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on McDonald’s from $327.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $319.72.

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.