McDonald’s Corporation $MCD Shares Acquired by Empirical Asset Management LLC

Empirical Asset Management LLC boosted its position in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 44.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,938 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 3,047 shares during the quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $3,020,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Willow Creek Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 9.5% during the 3rd quarter. Willow Creek Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,116 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $339,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in McDonald’s by 24.6% during the 3rd quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC now owns 138,402 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $42,059,000 after acquiring an additional 27,368 shares in the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC increased its position in shares of McDonald’s by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC now owns 10,207 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $3,102,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,713 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,344,000 after purchasing an additional 446 shares in the last quarter. Finally, North Star Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 2.5% during the third quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,596 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,005,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on MCD. Truist Financial upped their price objective on McDonald’s from $356.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. BTIG Research raised their price objective on McDonald’s from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised shares of McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $337.57.

Key McDonald’s News

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

• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s is rolling its Big Arch Burger into U.S. menus for a limited time — a larger, promotional sandwich that has driven traffic in other markets and fits the “bigger-burger” trend; this could boost short‑term ticket and visit frequency. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Seasonal and promotional menu items continue: the Shamrock Shake campaign is back, driving brand engagement and incremental visits around St. Patrick’s Day. These limited-time items support traffic and social buzz. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s India (West & South) owner Westlife Foodworld is running a Protein Week with low-price, app-focused protein options and free delivery promo — a targeted, value-led push that can grow AUVs and digital ordering in a fast-growing market. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support: JPMorgan raised its MCD price target to $325 and kept an Overweight rating, and Erste Group upgraded MCD to Buy, signaling confidence in sales momentum and McDonald’s financial profile for 2026. Note JPMorgan’s new PT still sits modestly below the current quote, so upside expectations are mixed. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Longer-term perspective pieces highlight MCD’s solid multi‑year returns and low‑volatility dividend profile; useful context for investors weighing valuation vs. growth, but not immediate catalysts. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Operational tweak: McDonald’s updated cash handling/check-out rules as pennies phase out — a minor customer-experience and cost/handling change with limited stock impact. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Macro/market weakness (broader market sell-off and Dow declines) is pressuring equities including MCD today — an external headwind that can overwhelm company-specific positives in the near term. Read More.

McDonald’s Trading Down 0.4%

MCD stock opened at $333.23 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $237.31 billion, a PE ratio of 27.89, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.52. McDonald’s Corporation has a 1 year low of $283.47 and a 1 year high of $336.00. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $315.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $309.60.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The fast-food giant reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.05 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.81 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 343.90% and a net margin of 31.85%.The business’s revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.83 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $1.86 per share. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.26%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 26,277 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.35, for a total value of $8,706,883.95. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 22,900 shares in the company, valued at $7,587,915. This trade represents a 53.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 2,626 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.25, for a total transaction of $854,106.50. Following the sale, the insider owned 5,398 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,755,699.50. This trade represents a 32.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 71,550 shares of company stock valued at $23,484,957. 0.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.