Analysts Set McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) PT at $320.65

McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-seven ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seventeen have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $320.65.

A number of research firms recently commented on MCD. Argus upgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on McDonald’s from $310.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Bank of America increased their price objective on McDonald’s from $321.00 to $324.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on McDonald’s from $296.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th.

Insider Activity

In other news, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 2,346 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total transaction of $727,260.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 2,905 shares in the company, valued at $900,550. This represents a 44.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.38, for a total transaction of $321,325.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 10,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,036,366.30. The trade was a 9.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 12,050 shares of company stock worth $3,556,688 over the last three months. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McDonald’s

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the third quarter worth approximately $1,394,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in McDonald’s by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,564,359 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,694,403,000 after purchasing an additional 49,106 shares during the period. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp raised its stake in McDonald’s by 58.9% during the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 138,102 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $35,194,000 after buying an additional 51,210 shares during the last quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 49,186 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $14,978,000 after buying an additional 2,997 shares during the period. Finally, Weiss Asset Management LP purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter worth $16,870,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

McDonald’s Stock Up 0.8 %

McDonald’s stock opened at $294.78 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $294.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $285.42. McDonald’s has a twelve month low of $243.53 and a twelve month high of $317.90. The company has a market capitalization of $211.25 billion, a PE ratio of 25.88, a P/E/G ratio of 3.95 and a beta of 0.73.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.05. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 175.42% and a net margin of 31.79%. The company had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.19 EPS. McDonald’s’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that McDonald’s will post 11.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.