Aldebaran Financial Inc. Reduces Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Aldebaran Financial Inc. lessened its stake in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 12.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,205 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 317 shares during the quarter. Aldebaran Financial Inc.’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $639,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MCD. Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Collier Financial bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Fairway Wealth LLC increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 110.0% during the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 105 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. bought a new position in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.75, for a total transaction of $84,225.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,214,275.25. This trade represents a 3.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Tiffanie L. Boyd sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.27, for a total value of $309,270.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,720,778.28. This trade represents a 15.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 27,497 shares of company stock valued at $8,461,400 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Trading Down 0.7 %

MCD opened at $309.25 on Tuesday. McDonald’s Co. has a 12-month low of $243.53 and a 12-month high of $326.32. The company has a market cap of $220.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.15, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.62. The company’s 50 day moving average is $307.41 and its 200 day moving average is $299.33.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 181.63% and a net margin of 31.73%. As a group, analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.29%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 62.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup cut their price objective on McDonald’s from $360.00 to $353.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $342.00 to $340.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $310.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their target price on McDonald’s from $297.00 to $290.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $322.87.

About McDonald’s

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.