McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-nine ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $310.71.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on MCD shares. Wedbush cut their price target on McDonald’s from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on McDonald’s from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 1st.

McDonald’s Stock Up 2.3 %

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $257.30 on Wednesday. McDonald’s has a 52 week low of $243.53 and a 52 week high of $302.39. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $257.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $275.62. The firm has a market cap of $185.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.71.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). McDonald’s had a net margin of 33.36% and a negative return on equity of 180.74%. The business had revenue of $6.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.16 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.63 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that McDonald’s will post 12.17 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 3rd were paid a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.60%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 3rd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.71%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were 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 filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider now owns 16,977 shares in the company, valued at $4,696,517.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jonathan Banner sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.02, for a total value of $220,016.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 19 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,225.38. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 5,593 shares of company stock valued at $1,472,518. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McDonald’s

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in McDonald’s by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 69,049,310 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $20,473,811,000 after purchasing an additional 599,745 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at $2,684,899,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in McDonald’s by 15.5% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,347,048 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,178,474,000 after acquiring an additional 987,099 shares in the last quarter. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in McDonald’s by 141,160.9% during the 4th quarter. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC now owns 5,613,710 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,664,521,000 after acquiring an additional 5,609,736 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in McDonald’s by 66.9% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 5,471,007 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,542,550,000 after acquiring an additional 2,193,769 shares in the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.