HighTower Advisors LLC Acquires 33,531 Shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD)

HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 2.8% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,237,837 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 33,531 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $386,663,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MCD. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. bought a new stake in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. bought a new stake in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Abound Financial LLC bought a new stake in McDonald’s during the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Copia Wealth Management bought a new stake in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

McDonald’s Price Performance

NYSE:MCD opened at $304.39 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $298.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $304.76. The company has a market capitalization of $217.21 billion, a PE ratio of 26.08, a P/E/G ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.52. McDonald’s Corporation has a 1-year low of $265.33 and a 1-year high of $326.32.

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

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is 60.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MCD has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. BTIG Research reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $356.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $364.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $314.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $350.00 price objective (up from $345.00) on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $326.87.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In related news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,487 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 8,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,713,740. This represents a 22.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 939 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $299.49, for a total transaction of $281,221.11. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 9,283 shares in the company, valued at $2,780,165.67. This trade represents a 9.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 7,280 shares of company stock valued at $2,215,178. 0.25% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.