Essex Savings Bank Has $2.22 Million Stake in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Essex Savings Bank raised its position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 10.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,281 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after buying an additional 712 shares during the period. Essex Savings Bank’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $2,217,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 1,422 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $433,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC raised its stake in McDonald’s by 2.0% during the third quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC now owns 1,686 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $513,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Proquility Private Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in McDonald’s by 1.0% in the third quarter. Proquility Private Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,472 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,057,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC boosted its position in McDonald’s by 2.8% during the third quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 1,300 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $396,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Founders Financial Alliance LLC grew its holdings in McDonald’s by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC now owns 4,980 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,269,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MCD opened at $298.97 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $214.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.74. McDonald’s Co. has a fifty-two week low of $243.53 and a fifty-two week high of $317.90. The company’s 50-day moving average is $299.08 and its 200 day moving average is $276.64.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.05. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 178.99% and a net margin of 31.79%. The business had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.82 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.19 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.77 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This is an increase from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.37%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is 58.65%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total value of $428,967.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $446,721.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.70, for a total transaction of $316,992.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,583 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,632,712.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total transaction of $428,967.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $446,721.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 35,596 shares of company stock worth $10,698,289 over the last quarter. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on MCD. Argus upgraded McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $301.00 to $317.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $319.46.

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.