J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Cuts Stock Position in McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG cut its stake in shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 3.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 195,215 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 6,917 shares during the period. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $57,036,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 0.9% in the first quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 3,630 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,134,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in McDonald’s by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC now owns 988 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $309,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC lifted its position in McDonald’s by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 1,793 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $560,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Consilium Wealth Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Consilium Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 1,334 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $417,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Security Financial Services INC. grew its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on MCD shares. Melius began coverage on McDonald’s in a research report on Monday, July 14th. They set a “sell” rating and a $250.00 price target for the company. TD Securities reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $305.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $314.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $325.86.

McDonald’s Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of MCD opened at $300.81 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $214.66 billion, a PE ratio of 25.78, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.51. McDonald’s Corporation has a 12 month low of $276.53 and a 12 month high of $326.32. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $306.78 and its 200-day moving average is $306.21.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The fast-food giant reported $3.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.04. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 225.52% and a net margin of 32.21%.The company had revenue of $6.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.97 EPS. McDonald’s’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were given a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is presently 60.67%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,487 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total transaction of $770,970.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 8,754 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,713,740. This trade represents a 22.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total transaction of $315,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 6,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,160,270. This represents a 12.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 7,402 shares of company stock worth $2,273,407. Insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

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.