GPM Growth Investors Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

GPM Growth Investors Inc. lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 0.6% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 20,258 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. McDonald’s makes up approximately 2.4% of GPM Growth Investors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. GPM Growth Investors Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $5,919,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 3,630 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,134,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Security Financial Services INC. increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Security Financial Services INC. now owns 5,043 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,575,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 11,588 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $3,620,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Platform Technology Partners increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Platform Technology Partners now owns 8,617 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,692,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alexander Labrunerie & CO. Inc. increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Alexander Labrunerie & CO. Inc. now owns 1,070 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $334,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on MCD shares. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $335.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Monday, October 20th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $335.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, October 17th. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $381.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $350.00 to $340.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $323.43.

McDonald’s Trading Up 1.4%

MCD stock opened at $309.97 on Tuesday. McDonald’s Corporation has a 12 month low of $276.53 and a 12 month high of $326.32. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $306.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $305.71. The stock has a market cap of $221.19 billion, a PE ratio of 26.56, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.50.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The fast-food giant reported $3.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.15 by $0.04. McDonald’s had a net margin of 32.21% and a negative return on equity of 225.52%. The firm had revenue of $6.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.97 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.86 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. This is a boost from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 60.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald’s news, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total value of $315,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 6,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,160,270. The trade was a 12.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,487 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total transaction of $770,970.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 8,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,713,740. This trade represents a 22.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,463 shares of company stock valued at $1,692,186. Company insiders own 0.25% 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.