Wedbush Analysts Cut Earnings Estimates for McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) – Equities research analysts at Wedbush reduced their Q3 2024 earnings per share estimates for McDonald’s in a research report issued on Monday, July 29th. Wedbush analyst N. Setyan now expects that the fast-food giant will post earnings per share of $3.14 for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $3.35. Wedbush currently has a “Outperform” rating and a $295.00 price target on the stock. The consensus estimate for McDonald’s’ current full-year earnings is $11.87 per share. Wedbush also issued estimates for McDonald’s’ Q4 2024 earnings at $2.86 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $11.66 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $2.82 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $3.13 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $3.39 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $3.10 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $12.44 EPS.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its earnings results 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). The business had revenue of $6.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.62 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 32.25% and a negative return on equity of 178.92%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.17 earnings per share.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on MCD. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on McDonald’s from $330.00 to $315.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on McDonald’s from $312.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, KeyCorp reduced their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $310.00 to $305.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $302.64.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

NYSE MCD opened at $268.75 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $193.68 billion, a PE ratio of 22.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.71. McDonald’s has a 52-week low of $243.53 and a 52-week high of $302.39. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $255.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $273.02.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be issued a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 3rd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.26, for a total transaction of $371,893.48. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $387,285.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other McDonald’s news, EVP Jonathan Banner sold 800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.02, for a total value of $220,016.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 19 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,225.38. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.26, for a total value of $371,893.48. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at $387,285.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,594 shares of company stock worth $1,454,507. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McDonald’s

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MCD. Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA now owns 155,740 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $46,179,000 after acquiring an additional 2,546 shares during the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,286,000. Strait & Sound Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $211,000. Main Street Research LLC increased its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Main Street Research LLC now owns 20,975 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $6,219,000 after buying an additional 199 shares during the period. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 1,091,052 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $321,449,000 after acquiring an additional 89,671 shares in the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.