Palisade Asset Management LLC Has $15.88 Million Stock Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Palisade Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 52,155 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 273 shares during the quarter. McDonald’s makes up about 1.6% of Palisade Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. Palisade Asset Management LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $15,882,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter valued at $44,000. Kings Path Partners LLC bought a new stake in McDonald’s in the second quarter valued at about $38,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the third quarter worth about $58,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s during the second quarter worth about $59,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in McDonald’s during the second quarter valued at approximately $65,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on MCD. Loop Capital restated a “buy” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Barclays lifted their price objective on McDonald’s from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $319.46.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In other news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total transaction of $428,967.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at $446,721.60. The trade was a 48.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 11,727 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.03, for a total value of $3,518,451.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 49,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,966,996.55. This represents a 19.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 34,498 shares of company stock valued at $10,381,296 over the last three months. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

McDonald’s Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of McDonald’s stock opened at $290.30 on Friday. McDonald’s Co. has a 12 month low of $243.53 and a 12 month high of $317.90. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $299.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $278.06. The stock has a market cap of $208.03 billion, a PE ratio of 25.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 0.74.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.82 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 175.42% and a net margin of 31.79%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.19 EPS. Analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This is a positive change from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.44%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.65%.

About McDonald’s

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.