Crystal Rock Capital Management Lowers Holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Crystal Rock Capital Management decreased its holdings in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 25.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,385 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 4,200 shares during the quarter. McDonald’s comprises 2.4% of Crystal Rock Capital Management’s holdings, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Crystal Rock Capital Management’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $3,672,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Vicus Capital purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter valued at about $306,000. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in McDonald’s by 74.6% during the 3rd quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,328 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $877,000 after acquiring an additional 1,422 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. increased its position in shares of McDonald’s by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 53,761 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $14,163,000 after purchasing an additional 402 shares during the last quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 31.8% in the 3rd quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 1,566 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $412,000 after purchasing an additional 378 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Management Network Inc. raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 9.8% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Management Network Inc. now owns 5,015 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,283,000 after purchasing an additional 447 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MCD has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group decreased their target price on McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 5th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $305.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Tuesday. Wedbush cut their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on McDonald’s from $327.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $317.37.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

MCD traded up $1.39 on Wednesday, hitting $274.43. 4,842,629 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,332,144. The business’s fifty day moving average is $280.92 and its 200 day moving average is $282.33. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $245.73 and a fifty-two week high of $302.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $197.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.71.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The fast-food giant reported $2.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by ($0.01). McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 171.96% and a net margin of 33.22%. The business had revenue of $6.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.16 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.63 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.74%.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total value of $303,750.72. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 16,977 shares in the company, valued at $4,696,517.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total value of $303,750.72. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 16,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,696,517.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total transaction of $312,533.62. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,140,168.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

About McDonald’s

McDonald's Corporation operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald's brand in the United States and internationally. It offers food and beverages, including hamburgers and cheeseburgers, various chicken sandwiches, fries, shakes, desserts, sundaes, cookies, pies, soft drinks, coffee, and other beverages; and full or limited breakfast, as well as sells various other products during limited-time promotions.