Kennebec Savings Bank Purchases 190 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Kennebec Savings Bank increased its position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 4.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,719 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 190 shares during the quarter. McDonald’s accounts for about 1.6% of Kennebec Savings Bank’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Kennebec Savings Bank’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $1,474,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MCD. Norges Bank bought a new position in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,725,190,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in McDonald’s by 39,039.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,497,919 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,092,645,000 after purchasing an additional 3,488,982 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $703,074,000. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $350,935,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in McDonald’s by 11.2% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 8,867,193 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,570,511,000 after purchasing an additional 895,896 shares in the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Citigroup raised their price target on McDonald’s from $353.00 to $364.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on McDonald’s from $292.00 to $314.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Erste Group Bank cut McDonald’s from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, Northcoast Research cut McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $324.96.

McDonald’s Trading Down 0.5%

NYSE:MCD opened at $307.44 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $219.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.99, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.56. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $312.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $302.66. McDonald’s Co. has a 1-year low of $243.53 and a 1-year high of $326.32.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The fast-food giant reported $2.67 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.67. The business had revenue of $5.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.17 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.70 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.30%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 62.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.07, for a total value of $295,850.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,161 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,516,496.27. The trade was a 7.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.25% of the stock is currently 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.