Ellsworth Advisors LLC Makes New $1.24 Million Investment in McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Ellsworth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 4,044 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock, valued at approximately $1,235,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Weatherly Asset Management L. P. grew its holdings in McDonald’s by 1.7% in the third quarter. Weatherly Asset Management L. P. now owns 4,585 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,393,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Tower View Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,924 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $3,624,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Burney Co. grew its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 95.7% in the 3rd quarter. Burney Co. now owns 39,575 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $12,026,000 after buying an additional 19,353 shares during the period. LifeSteps Financial Inc. increased its position in McDonald’s by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. LifeSteps Financial Inc. now owns 1,138 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $346,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Highland Capital Management LLC raised its stake in McDonald’s by 70.5% during the 3rd quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 7,729 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,349,000 after buying an additional 3,196 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of MCD stock opened at $310.61 on Friday. McDonald’s Corporation has a 52-week low of $276.53 and a 52-week high of $326.32. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $308.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $304.06. The company has a market capitalization of $221.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.50, a PEG ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 0.52.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The fast-food giant reported $3.22 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.33 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $7.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.10 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 280.89% and a net margin of 32.04%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.23 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st were paid a $1.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. This is a positive change from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.48%.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In related news, EVP Manuel Jm Steijaert sold 6,567 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.50, for a total transaction of $2,006,218.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,407,133. The trade was a 58.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Ian Frederick Borden sold 17,134 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total transaction of $5,311,540.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 26,353 shares in the company, valued at $8,169,430. This represents a 39.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 42,516 shares of company stock worth $13,036,090. 0.25% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on MCD shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley set a $335.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Mizuho upgraded shares of McDonald’s to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $295.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $362.00 to $358.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $324.57.

More McDonald’s News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlights McDonald’s restaurant margin dollars topping $4B in Q3 2025, arguing the company’s scale and value strategy can still expand margins despite inflation and a pressured consumer — a direct bullish signal for profit leverage. Does McDonald’s $4B Margin Milestone Signal Model Durability?
• Positive Sentiment: Reporting says McDonald’s plans over 8,000 new locations and major technology upgrades — if executed, that accelerates franchised development fees, systemwide sales growth and long-term comp growth. McDonald’s 2026 expansion plans: Over 8,000 new locations and major technology upgrades coming
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage of planned drive-thru and in-restaurant changes for 2026 suggests operational improvements (speed, order accuracy, upsell) that can lift throughput and margins at scale. 4 changes coming to McDonald’s drive-thrus in 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: McDonald’s Disney Happy Meal promotion and holiday menu/availability stories are routine marketing/seasonal items that support short-term traffic but are unlikely to move the stock materially on their own. How long will Disney Happy Meal be available at McDonald’s?
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple outlets covered McDonald’s being open on Christmas and customer-facing changes for 2026 — background consumer-facing news that maintains brand visibility but has limited near-term EPS impact. 10 changes coming to McDonald’s in 2026 that customers need to know
• Neutral Sentiment: A playful Dogecoin tweet calling out businesses that don’t accept DOGE is social-media noise rather than a catalyst for material payment adoption or revenue change. Dogecoin Account Wants You To Tag ‘Naughty’ Businesses That Won’t Take The Good Boy
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that a Minneapolis location locked doors to keep out individuals deemed a safety risk raise operational and reputational concerns in specific markets; localized safety issues can pressure sales and require extra store-level costs. McDonald’s locks doors to keep out individuals who present a risk in crime-ridden Minneapolis area
• Negative Sentiment: Lingering macro/near-term pressure: McDonald’s last quarterly report (Nov 5) showed a slight EPS and revenue miss, which remains a selling point for investors awaiting clearer margin/growth guidance.

McDonald’s Company Profile

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.