Cutler Investment Counsel LLC Sells 321 Shares of McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Cutler Investment Counsel LLC lessened its holdings in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 52,965 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 321 shares during the quarter. McDonald’s accounts for approximately 1.7% of Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $15,475,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 70,409,095 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $21,993,689,000 after buying an additional 239,753 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 16.8% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 9,341,460 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,917,993,000 after buying an additional 1,344,954 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 8,965,159 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,800,447,000 after buying an additional 97,966 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 5,142,473 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,606,354,000 after buying an additional 123,454 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 19.6% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,982,825 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,556,485,000 after buying an additional 815,768 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $299.49, for a total transaction of $281,221.11. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 9,283 shares in the company, valued at $2,780,165.67. The trade was a 9.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Jonathan Banner sold 1,000 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total transaction of $310,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 99 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,690. This represents a 90.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 6,402 shares of company stock worth $1,973,407 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $300.10 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $306.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $305.64. The company has a market cap of $214.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.50. McDonald’s Corporation has a 12-month low of $276.53 and a 12-month high of $326.32.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly 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. The business had revenue of $6.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 32.21% and a negative return on equity of 225.52%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.97 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $355.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Melius assumed coverage on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Monday, July 14th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $250.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $324.00 to $326.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $325.18.

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.