ABN Amro Investment Solutions Purchases 76,402 Shares of McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

ABN Amro Investment Solutions raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 218.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 111,392 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 76,402 shares during the period. ABN Amro Investment Solutions’ holdings in McDonald’s were worth $34,620,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Park Place Capital Corp lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 95.7% during the fourth quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 92 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Abound Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, DecisionPoint Financial LLC increased its stake in McDonald’s by 1,616.7% in the 4th quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC now owns 103 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting McDonald’s

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

• Positive Sentiment: Several bullish commentaries argue McDonald’s recent weakness may be an opportunity, citing improving top- and bottom-line growth, international resilience, and compressed earnings multiples that could make the stock more attractive. McDonald’s Sell-Off Is Your Opportunity
• Positive Sentiment: Another analyst upgrade says McDonald’s consistency deserves a higher multiple, pointing to faster recent revenue and earnings growth as evidence of a potential turnaround. McDonald’s: Consistency Deserves A Better Multiple (Rating Upgrade)
• Positive Sentiment: Menu innovation remains a supportive storyline, with McDonald’s rolling out new breakfast biscuits, a honey brown butter biscuit, and a Caesar menu that could help drive traffic and keep the brand in the conversation. McDonald’s Just Added 2 New Biscuits To Their Breakfast Menu
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent consumer-interest articles and product reviews highlight new limited-time menu items, but these are not yet proven to materially change earnings expectations. Review: McDonald’s Caesar sauce is the tangy menu addition we didn’t know we needed
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks noted that McDonald’s stock fell while the broader market improved, reinforcing the view that investors are rotating away from the name for now. McDonald’s (MCD) Stock Declines While Market Improves: Some Information for Investors
• Negative Sentiment: Bearish coverage says McDonald’s still may not be cheap enough despite the pullback, suggesting the market remains concerned about upside versus risk. McDonald’s: Still Not Good Enough

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on MCD shares. Rothschild & Co Redburn upgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $260.00 to $306.00 in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Citigroup lowered their price target on McDonald’s from $375.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on McDonald’s from $325.00 to $305.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Evercore set a $350.00 price objective on McDonald’s in a report on Friday, May 8th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $336.32.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

NYSE MCD opened at $263.76 on Wednesday. McDonald’s Corporation has a one year low of $263.65 and a one year high of $341.75. The company has a market capitalization of $187.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.41. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $276.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $299.70.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $6.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.47 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.62% and a negative return on equity of 442.10%. McDonald’s’s revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.67 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 2nd were paid a dividend of $1.86 per share. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 2nd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is 61.34%.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In other news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,763 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.36, for a total value of $769,108.68. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 6,268 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,744,760.48. The trade was a 30.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 5,252 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.32, for a total transaction of $1,493,248.64. Following the transaction, the insider owned 7,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,198,930.88. This trade represents a 40.44% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 8,681 shares of company stock worth $2,456,440. 0.26% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

McDonald’s 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.