First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Boosts Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. increased its holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 16.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,924 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 3,029 shares during the quarter. McDonald’s accounts for about 0.6% of First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $6,501,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 51.9% in the third quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 123 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Mendota Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth approximately $50,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCD has been the topic of a number of research reports. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $320.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Monday, February 5th. Wedbush lowered their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 26th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $291.00 to $341.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 5th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $317.37.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total transaction of $303,750.72. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 16,977 shares in the company, valued at $4,696,517.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total transaction of $312,533.62. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 18,075 shares in the company, valued at $5,140,168.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total transaction of $303,750.72. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 16,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,696,517.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

McDonald’s Trading Up 0.5 %

MCD traded up $1.31 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $274.35. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,843,250 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,332,155. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $280.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $282.33. McDonald’s Co. has a 12 month low of $245.73 and a 12 month high of $302.39. The stock has a market cap of $197.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.71.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The fast-food giant reported $2.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.71 by ($0.01). McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 171.96% and a net margin of 33.22%. The business had revenue of $6.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.63 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.34 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were given a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.74%.

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.