Baillie Gifford & Co. Lowers Stock Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Baillie Gifford & Co. lessened its holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 1.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 116,102 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 1,851 shares during the period. Baillie Gifford & Co.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $32,735,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Independent Wealth Network Inc. increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. now owns 863 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $256,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Concentric Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Concentric Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,551 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $756,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Paragon Capital Management Ltd increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Paragon Capital Management Ltd now owns 1,374 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $407,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Mechanics Financial Corp increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Mechanics Financial Corp now owns 5,331 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,581,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,268 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $376,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on MCD. Truist Financial lowered their price target on McDonald’s from $337.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on McDonald’s from $335.00 to $330.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $305.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Thursday, June 13th. Citigroup lowered their price target on McDonald’s from $312.00 to $297.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $313.89.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MCD traded up $1.09 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $251.09. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,814,312 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,366,292. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $245.73 and a fifty-two week high of $302.39. The company has a market capitalization of $180.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.71. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $260.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $277.85.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The fast-food giant reported $2.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by ($0.01). McDonald’s had a net margin of 33.36% and a negative return on equity of 180.74%. The business had revenue of $6.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.63 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Investors of record on Monday, June 3rd were given a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.66%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 56.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Jonathan Banner sold 800 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.02, for a total value of $220,016.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 19 shares in the company, valued at $5,225.38. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other McDonald’s news, EVP Jonathan Banner sold 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.02, for a total transaction of $220,016.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 19 shares in the company, valued at $5,225.38. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total value of $303,750.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 16,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,696,517.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 5,593 shares of company stock worth $1,472,518 over the last three months. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.