Apollon Wealth Management LLC Buys 4,931 Shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Apollon Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 21.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,923 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,931 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $8,279,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 2.6% during the third quarter. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. now owns 3,912 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,031,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Chicago Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 1.4% in the third quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 9,822 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,588,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Concord Wealth Partners raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 6.8% during the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 4,934 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,300,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares during the period. Hixon Zuercher LLC raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Hixon Zuercher LLC now owns 11,091 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,922,000 after buying an additional 162 shares during the period. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 1.4% during the third quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 7,766 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,046,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MCD has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. BTIG Research lowered McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $291.00 to $341.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Argus reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Monday, March 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $317.74.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 16,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,696,517.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total transaction of $312,533.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 18,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,140,168.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 16,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,696,517.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MCD traded down $2.31 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $266.99. 3,159,583 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,309,868. McDonald’s Co. has a 52-week low of $245.73 and a 52-week high of $302.39. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $278.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $282.83. The company has a market cap of $192.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.86, a PEG ratio of 3.01 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 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $6.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.16 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 180.54% and a net margin of 33.36%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.63 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 56.71%.

McDonald’s Profile

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.