Berger Financial Group Inc Grows Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Berger Financial Group Inc raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 4.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,117 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Berger Financial Group Inc’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $632,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Dfpg Investments LLC increased its position in McDonald’s by 10.9% during the 2nd quarter. Dfpg Investments LLC now owns 10,807 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $3,179,000 after buying an additional 1,062 shares in the last quarter. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. increased its position in shares of McDonald’s by 12.5% in the 1st quarter. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 900 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $252,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C. lifted its position in McDonald’s by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C. now owns 1,153 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $344,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the period. Register Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in McDonald’s by 46.4% during the 2nd quarter. Register Financial Advisors LLC now owns 947 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $282,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwest Bancshares Inc. raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 1.8% in the second quarter. Northwest Bancshares Inc. now owns 4,056 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,210,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.60% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MCD has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of McDonald’s from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $310.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $325.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 3rd. TD Cowen reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $340.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Wednesday, September 20th. BTIG Research reduced their target price on McDonald’s from $315.00 to $300.00 in a report on Monday, October 2nd. Finally, Stephens lowered their price target on McDonald’s from $325.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $316.66.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In related news, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 1,000 shares of the company’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 sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 929 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $264,765. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other McDonald’s news, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.00, for a total transaction of $285,000.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 929 shares in the company, valued at approximately $264,765. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 5,606 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.00, for a total transaction of $1,569,680.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 29,031 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,128,680. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,443 shares of company stock valued at $5,863,300 in the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of MCD opened at $272.12 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $264.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $281.09. The stock has a market cap of $197.38 billion, a PE ratio of 23.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.70. McDonald’s Co. has a 1-year low of $245.73 and a 1-year high of $299.35.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its earnings results on Monday, October 30th. The fast-food giant reported $3.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.19. McDonald’s had a net margin of 33.31% and a negative return on equity of 157.19%. The firm had revenue of $6.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.56 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.68 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 15th. Investors of record on Friday, December 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.45%. This is a boost from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.52. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 30th. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.52%.

McDonald’s 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.