Pacer Advisors Inc. Cuts Position in McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Posted by John Perry on Dec 27th, 2025

Pacer Advisors Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD – Free Report) by 11.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 126,891 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 16,135 shares during the quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $38,561,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MCD. Nova Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 1st quarter worth $26,000. HFM Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in McDonald’s during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. raised its position in McDonald’s by 142.9% in the second quarter. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. now owns 85 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Finally, GFG Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:MCD opened at $310.61 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $308.02 and a 200 day moving average of $304.06. The stock has a market cap of $221.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.50, a P/E/G ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 0.52. McDonald’s Corporation has a 12 month low of $276.53 and a 12 month high of $326.32.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The fast-food giant reported $3.22 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.33 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $7.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.10 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 32.04% and a negative return on equity of 280.89%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.23 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st were issued a $1.86 dividend. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. This is an increase from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 63.48%.

Key McDonald’s News

Here are the key news stories impacting McDonald’s this week:

Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlights McDonald’s restaurant margin dollars topping $4B in Q3 2025, arguing the company’s scale and value strategy can still expand margins despite inflation and a pressured consumer — a direct bullish signal for profit leverage. Does McDonald’s $4B Margin Milestone Signal Model Durability?
Positive Sentiment: Reporting says McDonald’s plans over 8,000 new locations and major technology upgrades — if executed, that accelerates franchised development fees, systemwide sales growth and long-term comp growth. McDonald’s 2026 expansion plans: Over 8,000 new locations and major technology upgrades coming
Positive Sentiment: Coverage of planned drive-thru and in-restaurant changes for 2026 suggests operational improvements (speed, order accuracy, upsell) that can lift throughput and margins at scale. 4 changes coming to McDonald’s drive-thrus in 2026
Neutral Sentiment: McDonald’s Disney Happy Meal promotion and holiday menu/availability stories are routine marketing/seasonal items that support short-term traffic but are unlikely to move the stock materially on their own. How long will Disney Happy Meal be available at McDonald’s?
Neutral Sentiment: Multiple outlets covered McDonald’s being open on Christmas and customer-facing changes for 2026 — background consumer-facing news that maintains brand visibility but has limited near-term EPS impact. 10 changes coming to McDonald’s in 2026 that customers need to know
Neutral Sentiment: A playful Dogecoin tweet calling out businesses that don’t accept DOGE is social-media noise rather than a catalyst for material payment adoption or revenue change. Dogecoin Account Wants You To Tag ‘Naughty’ Businesses That Won’t Take The Good Boy
Negative Sentiment: Reports that a Minneapolis location locked doors to keep out individuals deemed a safety risk raise operational and reputational concerns in specific markets; localized safety issues can pressure sales and require extra store-level costs. McDonald’s locks doors to keep out individuals who present a risk in crime-ridden Minneapolis area
Negative Sentiment: Lingering macro/near-term pressure: McDonald’s last quarterly report (Nov 5) showed a slight EPS and revenue miss, which remains a selling point for investors awaiting clearer margin/growth guidance.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McDonald’s news, EVP Manuel Jm Steijaert sold 6,567 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.50, for a total value of $2,006,218.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,407,133. The trade was a 58.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 3,195 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.82, for a total transaction of $977,094.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 6,088 shares in the company, valued at $1,861,832.16. The trade was a 34.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 42,516 shares of company stock worth $13,036,090. Insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MCD has been the topic of a number of research reports. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on McDonald’s from $322.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $360.00 to $350.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, BTIG Research reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $324.57.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on McDonald’s

About McDonald’s

(Free Report)

McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD) is a global quick-service restaurant company best known for its hamburgers, French fries and breakfast offerings. The company develops, operates and franchises a system of restaurants that sell a range of food and beverage items, including signature products such as the Big Mac, Quarter Pounder, Chicken McNuggets, McCafé coffee beverages and a variety of salads, desserts and seasonal menu items. McDonald’s serves customers through company-operated restaurants and franchised locations, and it supports sales via dine-in, drive-thru, digital ordering platforms and third-party delivery partnerships.

Founded in 1940 by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald as a single San Bernardino, California restaurant, the business was transformed into a franchising model after Ray Kroc joined in the mid-1950s and led the brand’s national and international expansion.