Albion Financial Group UT Sells 2,199 Shares of McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Albion Financial Group UT cut its holdings in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 7.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 28,039 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 2,199 shares during the period. Albion Financial Group UT’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $8,570,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 84.1% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 141,775 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $41,422,000 after purchasing an additional 64,757 shares during the last quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 236.7% during the third quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 6,502 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,976,000 after purchasing an additional 4,571 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 2.7% during the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 143,492 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $43,606,000 after purchasing an additional 3,774 shares during the last quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,120,000. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 317.2% during the third quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 19,079 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $5,691,000 after purchasing an additional 14,506 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Robert W. Baird set a $335.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Oppenheimer upgraded 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 report on Tuesday, January 6th. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $354.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $371.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $339.69.

McDonald’s Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of MCD opened at $309.85 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $220.12 billion, a PE ratio of 25.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $321.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $311.67. McDonald’s Corporation has a 1-year low of $283.47 and a 1-year high of $341.75.

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

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $1.86 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is presently 62.26%.

Key Headlines Impacting McDonald’s

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

• Positive Sentiment: Company pushes value-pricing again — reports say McDonald’s is rolling out a simplified McValue/true-value menu with items under $3 and meals starting at $5, a move that should help drive customer traffic and mix during promotional periods. McDonald’s is bringing back true value: New menu has items under $3 and meals starting at $5
• Positive Sentiment: Sector momentum is supportive — consumer stocks were higher in afternoon trading, giving McDonald’s the benefit of a broader industry lift that can boost multiple and sentiment for defensive consumer names. Sector Update: Consumer Stocks Advance in Afternoon Trading
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst/valuation commentary favors MCD — at least one investing write-up compares McDonald’s favorably versus peers (Domino’s), highlighting resilient same-store sales and arguing MCD looks attractive to buy for long-term investors. McDonald’s or Domino’s: One of These Is a Screaming Buy Right Now
• Neutral Sentiment: Brand PR: CEO response to viral “Big Arch” backlash — the CEO has made on-camera remarks and appearances to address a viral social media flap; this is short-term noise but worth watching for reputational impact. McDonald’s CEO Responds to the Viral Big Arch Backlash (WSJ) McDonald’s CEO responds to the viral Big Arch backlash (MSN)
• Neutral Sentiment: Delivery economics / consumer behavior: coverage offers tips to avoid small‑order delivery fees — indicates continued consumer sensitivity to delivery costs, which can influence AUV and digital mix but is not an immediate earnings shock. Getting McDonald’s Delivered? Here’s How To Avoid That Small Order Fee
• Neutral Sentiment: Local marketing: McDonald’s Türkiye launched a safety-focused McCafé campaign that reinterprets brand assets — a reminder of ongoing international marketing experiments that can boost local traffic. McDonald’s Türkiye Launches Campaign Spotlighting Driving Safety
• Neutral Sentiment: Franchise operator noise: recent Arcos Dorados (Latin America franchisee) earnings miss highlights regional operator risks but also underscores McDonald’s global scale advantage — watch Latin America disclosures for any systemwide guidance effects. How Investors May Respond To Arcos Dorados (ARCO) Earnings Miss
• Negative Sentiment: Input-cost pressure: reporting suggests beef prices remain elevated, pushing chains to lean more on chicken — sustained protein cost inflation could compress margins if menu price moves lag input costs. McDonald’s makes a big menu shift as beef prices rise

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 26,276 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $333.54, for a total transaction of $8,764,097.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 22,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,638,066. The trade was a 53.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 2,626 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $328.34, for a total transaction of $862,220.84. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 8,733 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,867,393.22. The trade was a 23.12% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 71,657 shares of company stock worth $23,722,204. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About McDonald’s

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.