Fernwood Investment Management LLC Reduces Stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Fernwood Investment Management LLC reduced its position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,657 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 240 shares during the period. Fernwood Investment Management LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $1,930,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Collier Financial purchased a new stake in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Fairway Wealth LLC lifted its position in McDonald’s by 110.0% in the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 105 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.75, for a total transaction of $84,225.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 7,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,214,275.25. This represents a 3.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.05, for a total value of $3,255,525.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 32,756 shares in the company, valued at $10,155,997.80. This represents a 24.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 27,497 shares of company stock valued at $8,461,400. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $299.35 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $304.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $298.86. McDonald’s Co. has a 52 week low of $243.53 and a 52 week high of $326.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $213.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.62.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. Equities research analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.37%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on MCD shares. Erste Group Bank upgraded McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $360.00 to $353.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on McDonald’s from $310.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on McDonald’s from $342.00 to $340.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $322.87.

McDonald’s Profile

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.