Insider Selling: McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) EVP Sells $428,967.28 in Stock

McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total value of $428,967.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $446,721.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

McDonald’s Trading Down 0.0 %

MCD opened at $287.93 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $267.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $270.93. McDonald’s Co. has a 1-year low of $243.53 and a 1-year high of $302.39. The stock has a market cap of $207.51 billion, a PE ratio of 24.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 0.72.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 29th. The fast-food giant reported $2.97 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.07 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.62 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 32.25% and a negative return on equity of 178.68%. McDonald’s’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.17 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.67 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be given a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.32%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.71%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McDonald’s

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Clear Investment Research LLC acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Kings Path Partners LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s during the second quarter worth about $38,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on McDonald’s from $295.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $288.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. KeyCorp reduced their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $310.00 to $305.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $310.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, McDonald’s presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $303.89.

About McDonald’s

McDonald's Corporation operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald's brand in the United States and internationally. It offers food and beverages, including hamburgers and cheeseburgers, various chicken sandwiches, fries, shakes, desserts, sundaes, cookies, pies, soft drinks, coffee, and other beverages; and full or limited breakfast, as well as sells various other products during limited-time promotions.