Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC Reduces Holdings in McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC reduced its stake in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 68.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 992 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 2,194 shares during the quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $302,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in McDonald’s by 162.5% in the 3rd quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC now owns 84 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. grew its stake in McDonald’s by 142.9% during the 2nd quarter. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. now owns 85 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in McDonald’s during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Traub Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on MCD shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $345.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Robert W. Baird set a $335.00 price objective on McDonald’s in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on McDonald’s from $356.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Guggenheim lowered their target price on McDonald’s from $325.00 to $320.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $320.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $339.69.

Trending Headlines about McDonald’s

Here are the key news stories impacting McDonald’s this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Tigress Financial raised its price target on MCD to $385 and kept a “buy” rating, implying roughly 17% upside from the current price — a direct bullish signal from an analyst that can drive buying interest. Street Insider: PT Raised
• Positive Sentiment: Capgemini extended its technology partnership with McDonald’s for five years to modernize restaurants and accelerate digital features — supports efficiency, digital sales growth and execution of the “Accelerating the Arches” strategy. Capgemini partnership
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic expansion plan: analyst coverage (Zacks) highlights MCD’s target of ~50,000 restaurants by 2027 with 2,600 openings planned for 2026 — accelerates unit-driven revenue potential and global footprint growth. Zacks: 50K restaurant target
• Positive Sentiment: Brand & merchandising lift: Crocs x Happy Meal collaboration and revived Happy Meal partnerships drive PR and collectible demand that can boost traffic and AUVs in limited windows. Crocs Happy Meal collab
• Neutral Sentiment: Local development: planning for a third McDonald’s in Collierville, TN — incremental local growth but immaterial to companywide fundamentals. Collierville restaurant plan
• Neutral Sentiment: Dividend narratives continue to feature MCD among reliable payers — supports longer‑term investor interest but is not an immediate price catalyst. Dividend stocks article
• Negative Sentiment: Product/PR risk from Big Arch launch — the nationwide rollout and a viral 13‑second CEO taste‑test video produced heavy attention but mixed consumer reviews and social backlash; competitors (Burger King, Wendy’s) have publicly trolled the clip. That creates short‑term reputational noise and raises the risk that the premium product may not sustain lift if consumer reception or value perception proves weak. Big Arch coverage

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In other news, EVP Jonathan Banner sold 6,201 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $333.29, for a total transaction of $2,066,731.29. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 2,291 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $763,567.39. The trade was a 73.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 2,626 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.25, for a total transaction of $854,106.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 5,398 shares in the company, valued at $1,755,699.50. This represents a 32.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 71,517 shares of company stock valued at $23,655,503 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of MCD opened at $328.22 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $233.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.47, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.51. McDonald’s Corporation has a 12 month low of $283.47 and a 12 month high of $341.75. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $318.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $311.03.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The fast-food giant reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.05 by $0.07. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 343.90% and a net margin of 31.85%.The business had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.83 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $1.86 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.26%.

About McDonald’s

McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD) is a global quick-service restaurant company best known for its hamburgers, French fries and breakfast offerings. The company develops, operates and franchises a system of restaurants that sell a range of food and beverage items, including signature products such as the Big Mac, Quarter Pounder, Chicken McNuggets, McCafé coffee beverages and a variety of salads, desserts and seasonal menu items. McDonald’s serves customers through company-operated restaurants and franchised locations, and it supports sales via dine-in, drive-thru, digital ordering platforms and third-party delivery partnerships.

Founded in 1940 by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald as a single San Bernardino, California restaurant, the business was transformed into a franchising model after Ray Kroc joined in the mid-1950s and led the brand’s national and international expansion.