Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Sells 20,113 Shares of McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. cut its stake in shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 1.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,077,753 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 20,113 shares during the quarter. McDonald’s makes up approximately 1.6% of Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. owned about 0.15% of McDonald’s worth $314,887,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of MCD. CenterBook Partners LP bought a new stake in McDonald’s during the 2nd quarter valued at $16,390,000. AlphaCore Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 10.4% during the second quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 11,615 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $3,394,000 after buying an additional 1,097 shares during the period. Mufg Securities Americas Inc. raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 24.9% in the second quarter. Mufg Securities Americas Inc. now owns 15,847 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $4,630,000 after acquiring an additional 3,162 shares in the last quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management Services Ltd raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 8,016.7% in the second quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management Services Ltd now owns 57,223 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $17,332,000 after acquiring an additional 56,518 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP lifted its stake in McDonald’s by 178,716.7% in the second quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP now owns 64,374 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $18,808,000 after acquiring an additional 64,338 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Morgan Stanley set a $335.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, October 17th. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $295.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. TD Cowen increased their target price on McDonald’s from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on McDonald’s from $381.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $324.57.

McDonald’s Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of MCD opened at $309.00 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $220.06 billion, a PE ratio of 26.48, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.50. McDonald’s Corporation has a 12 month low of $276.53 and a 12 month high of $326.32. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $302.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $304.36.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The fast-food giant reported $3.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.33 by ($0.11). McDonald’s had a net margin of 32.21% and a negative return on equity of 225.52%. The business had revenue of $7.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.23 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total value of $315,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 6,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,160,270. This trade represents a 12.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Manuel Jm Steijaert sold 13,134 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.42, for a total transaction of $3,945,716.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 4,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,383,734.52. The trade was a 74.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 34,463 shares of company stock valued at $10,549,351. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

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.