McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Shares Bought by Guardian Asset Advisors LLC

Guardian Asset Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,150 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 172 shares during the period. McDonald’s accounts for approximately 1.0% of Guardian Asset Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Guardian Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $1,493,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Collier Financial purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the third quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the third quarter worth $44,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on MCD. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on McDonald’s from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. Wedbush lifted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $336.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Loop Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $342.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.61.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,499 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.95, for a total transaction of $436,134.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $453,882. This represents a 49.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $2,214,275.25. The trade was a 3.66 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 7,406 shares of company stock valued at $2,150,857. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE:MCD opened at $307.47 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $291.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $292.08. McDonald’s Co. has a 12-month low of $243.53 and a 12-month high of $317.90. The firm has a market cap of $220.34 billion, a PE ratio of 26.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.74.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 175.42% and a net margin of 31.79%. Equities analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.73 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.30%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.16%.

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, Russia, Spain, and the U.K.