Legal & General Group Plc Purchases 41,113 Shares of McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 0.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,471,683 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 41,113 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $1,306,492,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in McDonald’s by 1.3% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 71,331,031 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $20,840,787,000 after buying an additional 921,936 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 16,828,420 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $4,901,595,000 after buying an additional 276,065 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 16.8% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 9,341,460 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,917,993,000 after buying an additional 1,344,954 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in McDonald’s by 1.1% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 8,965,159 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,800,447,000 after acquiring an additional 97,966 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 123,454 shares in the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

NYSE:MCD opened at $303.99 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $216.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.05, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.50. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $302.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $304.41. McDonald’s Corporation has a 52-week low of $276.53 and a 52-week high of $326.32.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its 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 analyst estimates of $7.10 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 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.23 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.86 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. This is an increase from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.48%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MCD. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Morgan Stanley set a $335.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, October 17th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $322.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. TD Cowen increased their price target on McDonald’s from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on McDonald’s in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $320.00 price target for the company. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $324.57.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 3,195 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.82, for a total transaction of $977,094.90. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 6,088 shares in the company, valued at $1,861,832.16. The trade was a 34.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Manuel Jm Steijaert sold 13,134 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.42, for a total transaction of $3,945,716.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,606 shares in the company, valued at $1,383,734.52. This represents a 74.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 17,329 shares of company stock valued at $5,237,811. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

McDonald’s Company 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.