DnB Asset Management AS Increases Stock Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

DnB Asset Management AS lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 18.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 149,106 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 22,765 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $43,224,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at $2,725,190,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $703,074,000. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec boosted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 542.9% during 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 grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 43,591.6% during 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 last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in McDonald’s by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 70,169,342 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $20,341,391,000 after acquiring an additional 526,466 shares during the period. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. TD Securities reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $347.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $342.00 to $340.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Loop Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $342.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Nine 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $323.61.

McDonald’s Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of McDonald’s stock opened at $312.87 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 fifty day moving average is $301.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $297.99. The firm has a market cap of $223.53 billion, a PE ratio of 27.47, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS 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 given a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.75, for a total value of $84,225.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,887 shares in the company, valued at $2,214,275.25. This trade represents a 3.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Tiffanie L. Boyd sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.27, for a total value of $309,270.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,720,778.28. The trade was a 15.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 32,405 shares of company stock valued at $9,886,656 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

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.