McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Shares Sold by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lessened its stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 3.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 543,724 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 19,022 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.08% of McDonald’s worth $157,601,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Collier Financial purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 110.0% during the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 105 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Citigroup cut their target price on McDonald’s from $360.00 to $353.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Loop Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $342.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $297.00 to $290.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Nine 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $323.30.

McDonald’s Price Performance

McDonald’s stock opened at $299.68 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $304.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $298.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $214.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.62. McDonald’s Co. has a 12-month low of $243.53 and a 12-month high of $326.32.

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

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.36%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.75, for a total value of $84,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 7,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,214,275.25. The trade was a 3.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.05, for a total transaction of $3,255,525.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 32,756 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,155,997.80. The trade was a 24.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 27,497 shares of company stock worth $8,461,400 in the last ninety days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.