McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) Shares Break Above 50-Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) passed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $249.77 and traded as high as $252.88. McDonald’s shares last traded at $250.9320, with a volume of 4,736,264 shares trading hands.

Trending Headlines about McDonald’s

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

• Positive Sentiment: BTIG reaffirmed its “Buy” rating and set a $295 price target, implying substantial potential upside from recent trading levels. The endorsement supports the view that McDonald’s valuation and earnings outlook remain attractive. BTIG rating report
• Positive Sentiment: The McRib has returned in select U.S. markets for a limited time. The highly recognizable product could increase restaurant traffic, digital engagement and promotional sales, although the geographically limited rollout reduces its companywide financial impact. USA Today McRib article
• Positive Sentiment: Ending McDonald’s more than 30-year FIFA World Cup sponsorship may reduce marketing costs and allow the company to redirect spending toward owned brands and promotions. The potential savings must be balanced against the loss of global visibility. NRN sponsorship article
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent commentary describes McDonald’s as an attractive, potentially underpriced restaurant stock, but this is an opinion rather than a new company disclosure. Seeking Alpha valuation analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Franchisees reportedly cited tough meat and other quality problems with McDonald’s new hand-breaded chicken. Execution issues could slow adoption of a key growth initiative, pressure franchisee economics and hurt customer satisfaction. MarketWatch chicken article
• Negative Sentiment: Erste Group Bank lowered its fiscal 2027 EPS estimates for McDonald’s. Estimate reductions can weigh on valuation and suggest analysts see potential pressure on sales, margins or growth expectations. EPS estimate article

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on MCD shares. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Monday, October 19th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $295.00 to $250.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $306.00 to $285.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $285.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $300.00 to $270.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $295.64.

McDonald’s Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $177.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.44. The business has a 50-day moving average of $249.77 and a 200-day moving average of $284.75.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The fast-food giant reported $3.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.32 by $0.06. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 572.06% and a net margin of 31.72%. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.13 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.19 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.93 per share. This is an increase from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 1st. This represents a $7.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is currently 60.44%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MCD. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,359,276,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in shares of McDonald’s by 132.1% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,325,880 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $412,071,000 after buying an additional 754,596 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,080,505 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $9,752,921,000 after acquiring an additional 646,675 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,637,785 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,130,587,000 after acquiring an additional 533,448 shares during the period. Finally, Ascentis Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 23,222.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ascentis Wealth Management LLC now owns 478,103 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $129,236,000 after acquiring an additional 476,053 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Company Profile

McDonald’s Corporation is a global quick-service restaurant company that operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald’s brand. Its restaurants serve a menu that includes hamburgers, cheeseburgers, chicken sandwiches, French fries, breakfast items, desserts, salads, beverages and coffee. Offerings vary by market, and many locations provide drive-thru service, delivery and digital ordering through the McDonald’s mobile app.

The company operates through a heavily franchised business model, with restaurants owned and operated by independent franchisees, affiliates and the company itself.