Legal & General Group Plc Has $1.26 Billion Stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Legal & General Group Plc cut its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 26.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,349,092 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 1,548,645 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned 0.61% of McDonald’s worth $1,260,758,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Boltwood Capital Management boosted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 1,882 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $546,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Pettee Investors Inc. grew its position in McDonald’s by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Pettee Investors Inc. now owns 5,401 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,566,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Modus Advisors LLC raised its stake in McDonald’s by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Modus Advisors LLC now owns 9,396 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,724,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. now owns 736 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $213,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Barn Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Barn Wealth LLC now owns 871 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

McDonald’s stock opened at $299.68 on Monday. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $243.53 and a fifty-two week high of $326.32. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $304.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $298.80. The stock has a market cap of $214.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.31, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.62.

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

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.36%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MCD shares. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Loop Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $342.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on McDonald’s from $297.00 to $290.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $323.30.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

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

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.