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

McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the thirty research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twenty-one have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $319.52.

Several brokerages have issued reports on MCD. Bank of America upped their price objective on McDonald’s from $308.00 to $322.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. Guggenheim increased their price target on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. UBS Group increased their price target on McDonald’s from $305.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on McDonald’s from $280.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on McDonald’s from $295.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th.

McDonald’s Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $314.65 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $296.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $274.34. McDonald’s has a 52-week low of $243.53 and a 52-week high of $317.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $226.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.71, a PEG ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 0.73.

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

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of $1.77 per share. This is a positive change from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.70, for a total transaction of $316,992.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,583 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,632,712.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 2,346 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total transaction of $727,260.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 2,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $900,550. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.70, for a total value of $316,992.60. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,583 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,632,712.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 32,998 shares of company stock valued at $9,935,493. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of McDonald’s

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MCD. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 31,151.1% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,319,142 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $706,202,000 after purchasing an additional 2,311,721 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 66.9% in the first 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 purchasing an additional 2,193,769 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the first quarter valued at $348,206,000. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 39.7% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,565,398 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $1,005,264,000 after purchasing an additional 1,012,534 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mondrian Investment Partners LTD purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the second quarter valued at $110,321,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

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.