McDonald’s Corporation $MCD Shares Sold by Welch & Forbes LLC

Welch & Forbes LLC trimmed its holdings in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 1.1% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 307,613 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 3,354 shares during the period. McDonald’s comprises about 1.1% of Welch & Forbes LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $93,481,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. increased its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 142.9% during the 2nd quarter. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. now owns 85 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 162.5% during the 3rd quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC now owns 84 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. GFG Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Financial Gravity Companies Inc. acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In other news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,486 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.00, for a total transaction of $795,520.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,268 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,005,760. This trade represents a 28.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 2,626 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.58, for a total value of $805,079.08. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 5,398 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,654,918.84. This represents a 32.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 45,142 shares of company stock worth $13,841,169 over the last three months. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on MCD. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on McDonald’s from $340.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $372.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Oppenheimer raised shares of McDonald’s from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $355.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $335.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, October 17th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $328.88.

McDonald’s Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $314.86 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $309.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $306.41. The stock has a market cap of $224.23 billion, a PE ratio of 26.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.53. McDonald’s Corporation has a 52-week low of $283.47 and a 52-week high of $326.32.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The fast-food giant reported $3.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.33 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $7.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.10 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 32.04% and a negative return on equity of 280.89%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.23 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

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.