Cerity Partners LLC Sells 8,180 Shares of McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Cerity Partners LLC lessened its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 483,749 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 8,180 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC owned approximately 0.07% of McDonald’s worth $141,339,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. WealthTrust Axiom LLC lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. WealthTrust Axiom LLC now owns 1,946 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $608,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Certior Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 2.6% during the first quarter. Certior Financial Group LLC now owns 1,367 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $427,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Alaethes Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 3.0% in the first quarter. Alaethes Wealth LLC now owns 1,219 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $381,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 3,604 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,053,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sunbeam Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC now owns 1,112 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $325,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald’s news, CFO Ian Frederick Borden sold 17,134 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total transaction of $5,311,540.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 26,353 shares in the company, valued at $8,169,430. The trade was a 39.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 3,195 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 6,088 shares in the company, valued at $1,861,832.16. This trade represents a 34.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 40,030 shares of company stock valued at $12,240,570 over the last ninety days. 0.25% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

NYSE:MCD opened at $311.11 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $304.00 and its 200-day moving average is $303.83. McDonald’s Corporation has a 52-week low of $276.53 and a 52-week high of $326.32. The company has a market cap of $221.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.55, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.52.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly 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). The firm had revenue of $7.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.10 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 32.04% and a negative return on equity of 280.89%. The company’s revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.23 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st will be paid a $1.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 1st. This is a positive change from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.48%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on MCD. Guggenheim boosted their target price on McDonald’s from $295.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $360.00 to $350.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $381.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. BTIG Research reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted 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. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $324.57.

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.