McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Shares Sold by Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund trimmed its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 85.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,019 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 59,570 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $2,825,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MCD. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in McDonald’s by 25.5% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 78,279 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $23,211,000 after acquiring an additional 15,884 shares during the period. Artemis Investment Management LLP boosted its position in McDonald’s by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 32,527 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $9,645,000 after purchasing an additional 2,513 shares in the last quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth approximately $305,000. Trust Co of the South purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,041,000. Finally, PFG Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 28.1% in the 4th quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 4,658 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,381,000 after purchasing an additional 1,021 shares during the period. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $251.41 on Friday. McDonald’s Co. has a 1 year low of $243.53 and a 1 year high of $302.39. The company has a market capitalization of $181.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $255.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $274.06.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The fast-food giant reported $2.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.71 by ($0.01). McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 180.74% and a net margin of 33.36%. The business had revenue of $6.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.16 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.63 EPS. McDonald’s’s revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.13 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be issued a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.66%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $295.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Bank of America reduced their price target on McDonald’s from $302.00 to $288.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. Guggenheim dropped their price objective on McDonald’s from $315.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $308.57.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, EVP Jonathan Banner sold 800 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.02, for a total transaction of $220,016.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 19 shares in the company, valued at $5,225.38. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other McDonald’s news, EVP Jonathan Banner sold 800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.02, for a total value of $220,016.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,225.38. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $265.13, for a total value of $291,377.87. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 15,878 shares in the company, valued at $4,209,734.14. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,594 shares of company stock valued at $1,454,507 over the last 90 days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

McDonald’s Profile

McDonald's Corporation operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald's brand in the United States and internationally. It offers food and beverages, including hamburgers and cheeseburgers, various chicken sandwiches, fries, shakes, desserts, sundaes, cookies, pies, soft drinks, coffee, and other beverages; and full or limited breakfast, as well as sells various other products during limited-time promotions.