Howard Capital Management Group LLC Sells 337 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Howard Capital Management Group LLC cut its holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 10.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,925 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 337 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Group LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $891,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Kings Path Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the second quarter valued at about $38,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC increased its position in shares of McDonald’s by 32.3% in the first quarter. Keener Financial Planning LLC now owns 176 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the second quarter valued at about $59,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the second quarter valued at about $65,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of McDonald’s stock opened at $314.75 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $226.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 0.73. The company’s 50 day moving average is $293.64 and its 200 day moving average is $273.48. McDonald’s Co. has a twelve month low of $243.53 and a twelve month high of $315.36.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.07 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $6.49 billion for 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%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.17 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.77 per share. This is an increase from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.25%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is 60.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MCD shares. Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Argus upgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $296.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, 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 report on Monday, July 22nd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $315.69.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 11,727 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.03, for a total value of $3,518,451.81. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 49,885 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,966,996.55. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other McDonald’s news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 11,727 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.03, for a total value of $3,518,451.81. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 49,885 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,966,996.55. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.70, for a total transaction of $316,992.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,583 shares in the company, valued at $3,632,712.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 34,097 shares of company stock worth $10,221,233 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Profile

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.