Mizuho Securities USA LLC Grows Stock Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC raised its position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 46.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 67,919 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 21,403 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $19,689,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at about $703,074,000. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec increased its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 542.9% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 801,858 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $244,174,000 after buying an additional 677,139 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 43,591.6% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 590,711 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $171,241,000 after buying an additional 589,359 shares during the period. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI increased its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 518.1% in the fourth quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 348,119 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $100,916,000 after buying an additional 291,802 shares during the period. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI increased its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 3,580.1% in the third quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 268,650 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $81,807,000 after buying an additional 261,350 shares during the period. 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 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.75, for a total value of $84,225.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 7,887 shares in the company, valued at $2,214,275.25. This represents a 3.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Tiffanie L. Boyd sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.27, for a total value of $309,270.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,564 shares in the company, valued at $1,720,778.28. This trade represents a 15.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 33,504 shares of company stock worth $10,206,575 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

MCD stock opened at $305.07 on Friday. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $243.53 and a fifty-two week high of $326.32. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $298.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $297.38. The company has a market capitalization of $217.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71.

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

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on MCD. Bank of America lifted their price objective on McDonald’s from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Loop Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $342.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on McDonald’s from $342.00 to $340.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Erste Group Bank upgraded McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.39.

McDonald’s Company Profile

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.