McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.05, Briefing.com reports. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.79% and a negative return on equity of 178.99%. The firm had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.19 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year.

McDonald’s Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of MCD stock traded up $3.53 on Friday, reaching $295.64. The company had a trading volume of 1,526,918 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,518,749. The stock has a market capitalization of $212.07 billion, a PE ratio of 25.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.85 and a beta of 0.73. McDonald’s has a one year low of $243.53 and a one year high of $317.90. The business’s 50-day moving average is $298.25 and its 200 day moving average is $275.58.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.39%. This is a boost from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is 58.65%.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In other news, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 2,346 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $900,550. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $292.38, for a total value of $321,325.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 10,385 shares in the company, valued at $3,036,366.30. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 2,346 shares of the firm’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 transaction 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 approximately $900,550. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 34,097 shares of company stock valued at $10,256,818. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Baird R W downgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $310.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $301.00 to $317.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Robert W. Baird downgraded shares of McDonald’s from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $320.00 to $290.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Guggenheim downgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $319.46.

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.