Lincoln National Corp Reduces Stock Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Lincoln National Corp reduced its holdings in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 24,492 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 1,081 shares during the quarter. Lincoln National Corp’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $7,262,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in McDonald’s by 51.9% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 123 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management bought a new position in McDonald’s during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Bear Mountain Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth about $43,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of MCD traded down $1.02 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $269.30. The company had a trading volume of 2,478,555 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,311,579. The company’s 50-day moving average is $278.97 and its 200-day moving average is $282.83. McDonald’s Co. has a twelve month low of $245.73 and a twelve month high of $302.39. The company has a market capitalization of $194.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.71.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The fast-food giant reported $2.70 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.71 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $6.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.16 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 33.36% and a negative return on equity of 180.54%. McDonald’s’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.63 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that McDonald’s Co. will post 12.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is presently 56.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com downgraded McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 5th. BTIG Research lowered McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. KeyCorp decreased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $315.00 to $310.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Guggenheim dropped their target price on McDonald’s from $325.00 to $315.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, McDonald’s presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $317.74.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

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

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.