McDonald’s Corporation $MCD Shares Sold by Commonwealth Equity Services LLC

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC cut its stake in shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 426,981 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 19,557 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $98,607,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,080,505 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $9,752,921,000 after acquiring an additional 646,675 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the second quarter worth $1,359,276,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 17.2% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,637,785 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,130,587,000 after purchasing an additional 533,448 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 2,089,980 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $649,545,000 after buying an additional 134,480 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 3.4% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,909,321 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $593,366,000 after buying an additional 62,562 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of MCD opened at $276.36 on Friday. McDonald’s Corporation has a one year low of $229.20 and a one year high of $341.75. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $248.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $282.57. The stock has a market cap of $195.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.42.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The fast-food giant reported $3.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.38 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $7.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.28 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.72% and a negative return on equity of 572.06%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.22 EPS. Analysts predict that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be given a $1.93 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. This represents a $7.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. This is a boost from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 58.86%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on MCD. Evercore decreased their price target on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on McDonald’s from $285.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Tigress Financial upped their price objective on McDonald’s from $385.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on McDonald’s from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $325.00 to $295.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $297.82.

Key Headlines Impacting McDonald’s

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

• Positive Sentiment: Argus raised its price target to $320 from $310 and reiterated a “buy” rating, signaling confidence in the stock’s prospects. Argus rating
• Neutral Sentiment: McDonald’s is testing value bundles at nearly 2,000 U.S. restaurants, ahead of a planned national value platform in early 2027. The deals may help bring back customers, but the company is still assessing their effect on traffic and orders. McDonald’s value-bundle test
• Neutral Sentiment: Third-quarter profit beat analyst estimates, but revenue missed and U.S. comparable sales declined. That mixed backdrop helps explain why investors are watching for evidence that value promotions can sustain a domestic recovery. Q3 earnings and U.S. traffic
• Negative Sentiment: Consumers have filed a lawsuit alleging McDonald’s labeled McCafé drinks “sugar free” despite some containing as much as 18 grams of sugar. The allegations are unproven, but the case could create legal and reputational risk. McCafé labeling lawsuit
• Negative Sentiment: Freedom Broker cut its rating from “buy” to “hold” and lowered its price target to $298 from $305, adding a more cautious view alongside the recent analyst optimism. Freedom Broker rating change

About McDonald’s

McDonald’s Corporation is a global quick-service restaurant company that operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald’s brand. Its restaurants serve a menu that includes hamburgers, cheeseburgers, chicken sandwiches, French fries, breakfast items, desserts, salads, beverages and coffee. Offerings vary by market, and many locations provide drive-thru service, delivery and digital ordering through the McDonald’s mobile app.

The company operates through a heavily franchised business model, with restaurants owned and operated by independent franchisees, affiliates and the company itself.