Wedbush Reiterates “Outperform” Rating for McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD)

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reissued by equities researchers at Wedbush in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $295.00 target price on the fast-food giant’s stock. Wedbush’s price objective indicates a potential downside of 2.19% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on MCD. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $330.00 to $315.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Tigress Financial increased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $355.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on McDonald’s from $310.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on McDonald’s from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on McDonald’s from $305.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $318.22.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

NYSE MCD opened at $301.61 on Wednesday. McDonald’s has a twelve month low of $243.53 and a twelve month high of $317.90. The stock has a market cap of $217.36 billion, a PE ratio of 25.60, a PEG ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 0.73. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $296.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $274.51.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 29th. The fast-food giant reported $2.97 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.07 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.62 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 178.68% and a net margin of 32.25%. McDonald’s’s revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.17 EPS. Research analysts forecast that McDonald’s will post 11.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In other news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 11,727 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.03, for a total transaction of $3,518,451.81. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 49,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,966,996.55. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 11,727 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.03, for a total transaction of $3,518,451.81. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 49,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,966,996.55. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 2,346 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total value of $727,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 2,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $900,550. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 32,998 shares of company stock worth $9,935,493. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McDonald’s

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MCD. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC now owns 9,962 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $3,031,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Orrstown Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 74.8% during the third quarter. Orrstown Financial Services Inc. now owns 4,058 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,236,000 after buying an additional 1,736 shares during the period. Old Port Advisors grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 14.1% during the third quarter. Old Port Advisors now owns 1,027 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $313,000 after buying an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in McDonald’s by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 232,093 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $70,675,000 after buying an additional 11,224 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Concord Wealth Partners lifted its stake in McDonald’s by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 8,446 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,572,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

McDonald’s Company Profile

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.