Verity Asset Management Inc. Sells 2,598 Shares of McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Verity Asset Management Inc. lessened its holdings in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 51.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,406 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 2,598 shares during the quarter. Verity Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $703,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. HFM Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in McDonald’s during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Nova Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. GFG Capital LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the second quarter worth $29,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In other news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,487 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total value of $770,970.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 8,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,713,740. The trade was a 22.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jonathan Banner sold 1,000 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total transaction of $310,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 99 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,690. The trade was a 90.99% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 4,487 shares of company stock worth $1,395,970 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on MCD shares. Bank of America reduced their price objective on McDonald’s from $327.00 to $322.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 18th. KeyCorp reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $335.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Monday, October 20th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on McDonald’s from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $325.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $323.43.

McDonald’s Stock Down 1.3%

NYSE MCD opened at $298.44 on Monday. McDonald’s Corporation has a 52-week low of $276.53 and a 52-week high of $326.32. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $305.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $305.44. The firm has a market cap of $212.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.50.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The fast-food giant reported $3.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.04. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 225.52% and a net margin of 32.21%.The company had revenue of $6.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.97 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st will be given a $1.86 dividend. This is a positive change from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 1st. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 63.75%.

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.