Centre Asset Management LLC Invests $2.65 Million in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Centre Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 8,870 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock, valued at approximately $2,647,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of MCD. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 102.0% during the 1st quarter. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 101 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the period. Ridgewood Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 1st quarter worth $32,000. Retirement Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Kepos Capital LP bought a new stake in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. 67.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

McDonald’s Trading Up 1.1 %

MCD opened at $284.84 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $207.58 billion, a PE ratio of 26.20, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.64. McDonald’s Co. has a 1-year low of $230.58 and a 1-year high of $299.35. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $287.75 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $285.82.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The fast-food giant reported $3.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.77 by $0.40. The company had revenue of $6.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.30 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 33.06% and a negative return on equity of 139.57%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.55 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.49 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 18th. Investors of record on Friday, September 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.52 per share. This represents a $6.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 31st. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 55.93%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 4,487 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.87, for a total transaction of $1,336,542.69. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 11,412 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,399,292.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 4,487 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.87, for a total value of $1,336,542.69. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 11,412 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,399,292.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 1,000 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.00, for a total transaction of $285,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 929 shares in the company, valued at approximately $264,765. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 18,149 shares of company stock valued at $5,257,201 in the last 90 days. 0.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCD has been the subject of a number of research reports. Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 28th. TD Cowen reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $326.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Thursday, July 27th. Tigress Financial increased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. BTIG Research increased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $315.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 17th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $323.17.

McDonald’s Company Profile

McDonald's Corporation operates and franchises McDonald's restaurants in the United States and internationally. The company's restaurants offer hamburgers and cheeseburgers, chicken sandwiches and nuggets, fries, salads, shakes, frozen desserts, sundaes, soft serve cones, bakery items, soft drinks, coffee, and beverages and other beverages, as well as breakfast menu, including muffins, Sausages, biscuit and bagel sandwiches, oatmeal, hash browns, breakfast burritos and hotcakes.