Arax Advisory Partners Cuts Stake in McDonald’s Corporation $MCD

Arax Advisory Partners cut its stake in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) by 39.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 25,886 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 17,150 shares during the quarter. Arax Advisory Partners’ holdings in McDonald’s were worth $7,911,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Park Place Capital Corp raised its position in McDonald’s by 95.7% in the fourth quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 92 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. DecisionPoint Financial LLC raised its position in McDonald’s by 1,616.7% in the fourth quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC now owns 103 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

NYSE:MCD opened at $284.88 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $202.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.41. McDonald’s Corporation has a one year low of $271.85 and a one year high of $341.75. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $289.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $306.75.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.74 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $6.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.47 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 442.10% and a net margin of 31.62%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.67 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 2nd will be paid a $1.86 dividend. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 2nd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.34%.

Key Stories Impacting McDonald’s

Here are the key news stories impacting McDonald’s this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Commentary highlighted McDonald’s as a “rare mega-cap” with accelerating fundamentals, citing 3.8% global comparable sales growth, more than $9 billion in loyalty sales over 90 days, and 9.4% year-over-year revenue growth, which supports the bull case for the stock. McDonald’s Will Trade at This Price in 2028
• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s is testing AI-powered drive-thru ordering, and early results from a million orders appear promising; if rolled out successfully, this could improve efficiency and margins over time. McDonald’s Is Letting AI Take Your Orders Again. A Million Orders Later, the Results Look Promising.
• Positive Sentiment: Promotional activity tied to FIFA World Cup meals, collectible cups, and Squishmallows could help drive customer traffic and add some sales momentum. McDonald’s FIFA World Cup meals with Squishmallows and 9 collectible cups are here
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst and investor commentary remains generally supportive, with reports noting McDonald’s continues to attract attention as a defensive, widely followed stock. McDonald’s Corporation (MCD) Is a Trending Stock: Facts to Know Before Betting on It
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling by executive Joseph Erlinger may weigh on sentiment slightly, even though such sales do not necessarily reflect a change in business outlook. Joseph Erlinger Sells 5,252 Shares of McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Some recent coverage has also raised concerns about customer pushback on operational changes and workplace safety issues, which could create headline risk if they persist. Should McDonald’s AI Drive Thru Push and Safety Scrutiny Require Action From McDonald’s (MCD) Investors?

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In related news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,763 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.36, for a total value of $769,108.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 6,268 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,744,760.48. This trade represents a 30.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 5,252 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.32, for a total value of $1,493,248.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 7,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,198,930.88. The trade was a 40.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 11,307 shares of company stock valued at $3,262,622 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MCD. Morgan Stanley set a $331.00 target price on McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Erste Group Bank downgraded McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on McDonald’s from $330.00 to $305.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on McDonald’s from $380.00 to $350.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $336.26.

McDonald’s Company Profile

McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD) is a global quick-service restaurant company best known for its hamburgers, French fries and breakfast offerings. The company develops, operates and franchises a system of restaurants that sell a range of food and beverage items, including signature products such as the Big Mac, Quarter Pounder, Chicken McNuggets, McCafé coffee beverages and a variety of salads, desserts and seasonal menu items. McDonald’s serves customers through company-operated restaurants and franchised locations, and it supports sales via dine-in, drive-thru, digital ordering platforms and third-party delivery partnerships.

Founded in 1940 by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald as a single San Bernardino, California restaurant, the business was transformed into a franchising model after Ray Kroc joined in the mid-1950s and led the brand’s national and international expansion.