Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. Buys 86 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. grew its stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 0.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 72,232 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $20,366,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management purchased a new stake in McDonald’s in the third quarter worth $33,000. Clear Investment Research LLC purchased a new stake in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC purchased a new stake in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MCD. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on McDonald’s from $335.00 to $330.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Evercore ISI reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $330.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Argus reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Monday, March 25th. UBS Group reduced their price target on McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Wedbush reduced their price target on McDonald’s from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $313.89.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 in the company, valued at approximately $4,696,517.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total value of $303,750.72. Following the sale, the insider now owns 16,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,696,517.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $265.13, for a total value of $291,377.87. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 15,878 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,209,734.14. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,095 shares of company stock worth $1,100,625. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Price Performance

MCD traded down $1.58 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $248.41. 1,187,539 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,415,861. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $263.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $279.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $179.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.71. McDonald’s Co. has a 52 week low of $245.73 and a 52 week high of $302.39.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The fast-food giant reported $2.70 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $6.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.16 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 33.36% and a negative return on equity of 180.74%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.63 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.19 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 3rd were issued a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.69%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.71%.

About McDonald’s

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.