McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) Given New $250.00 Price Target at Sanford C. Bernstein

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) had its target price reduced by analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein from $295.00 to $250.00 in a research report issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “market perform” rating on the fast-food giant’s stock. Sanford C. Bernstein’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 8.36% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on MCD. Seaport Research Partners assumed coverage on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. HSBC lowered their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $357.00 to $356.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on McDonald’s from $335.00 to $310.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Piper Sandler set a $286.00 price target on McDonald’s in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on McDonald’s from $300.00 to $270.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $295.94.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $230.71 on Thursday. McDonald’s has a 52 week low of $229.20 and a 52 week high of $341.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $163.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.74, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.44. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $256.66 and its 200 day moving average is $275.31.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The fast-food giant reported $3.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.32 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.13 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.72% and a negative return on equity of 572.06%. McDonald’s’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.19 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that McDonald’s will post 12.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McDonald’s

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 1.8% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,080,505 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $9,752,921,000 after acquiring an additional 646,675 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,560,037 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,699,314,000 after purchasing an additional 384,762 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the second quarter worth $1,359,276,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in shares of McDonald’s by 17.2% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,637,785 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,130,587,000 after buying an additional 533,448 shares during the period. Finally, Diamant Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in McDonald’s by 30,979.0% during the first quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,596,340 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $806,917,000 after buying an additional 2,587,986 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

More McDonald’s News

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

• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s increased its quarterly dividend and announced the decision earlier than usual, signaling continued confidence in returning cash to shareholders. The appointment of a new president for its U.S. business could also support efforts to address softer domestic traffic. What Is McDonald’s Signaling With Its Faster Dividend And New US Chief?
• Positive Sentiment: KeyCorp lowered its price target to $280 from $305 but retained an “overweight” rating, implying substantial potential upside from the recent trading level. McDonald’s Given New $280 Price Target at KeyCorp
• Neutral Sentiment: The company is investing approximately $8.5 billion in its “McDonald’s Next” modernization program, including remodeled restaurants and an effort to make locations more inviting. A potential PlayPlace comeback could improve the customer experience, but the strategy’s sales benefits remain unproven. McDonald’s Wants Its Franchisees to Modernize
• Negative Sentiment: McDonald’s faces proposed federal antitrust class actions alleging that an AI-powered pricing tool shared nonpublic store-level sales and pricing data among competing franchisees, facilitating coordinated menu prices. McDonald’s says the system only recommends prices and does not set them, but litigation could create regulatory, financial and reputational risks. McDonald’s sued over alleged AI-powered menu price-fixing
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. franchisees are reportedly resisting upgrade costs of at least $800,000 per restaurant, threatening execution of the modernization plan and potentially increasing franchisee tensions. McDonald’s franchisees push back on remodeling costs
• Negative Sentiment: Promotional $5 meals and $6 combos have not clearly restored customer visits, while reports of smaller portions and higher prices reinforce concerns about value perception and weakening traffic. $5 meals, $6 combos and fewer visits

About McDonald’s

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.