First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA Raises Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA raised its position in shares of McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,112 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $1,252,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of MCD. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Kings Path Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Hara Capital LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $44,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $59,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McDonald’s Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of McDonald’s stock traded up $1.47 on Wednesday, hitting $297.80. The stock had a trading volume of 175,711 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,485,367. McDonald’s Co. has a one year low of $243.53 and a one year high of $317.90. The stock has a market cap of $213.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.01, a PEG ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.74. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $299.90 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $278.55.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.82 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 175.42% and a net margin of 31.79%. The business’s revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.19 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of $1.77 per share. This is a positive change from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.38%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is presently 58.65%.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In other news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 11,727 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.03, for a total value of $3,518,451.81. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 49,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,966,996.55. This represents a 19.03 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total transaction of $428,967.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at $446,721.60. The trade was a 48.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 35,597 shares of company stock worth $10,702,754 over the last 90 days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on MCD shares. Tigress Financial lifted their price target on McDonald’s from $355.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on McDonald’s from $295.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Loop Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, October 18th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $301.00 to $317.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock 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.