Morgan Stanley Cuts McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) Price Target to $336.00

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) had its price target trimmed by Morgan Stanley from $340.00 to $336.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the fast-food giant’s stock.

MCD has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $295.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on McDonald’s from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $285.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Argus raised shares of McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $321.22.

McDonald’s Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of McDonald’s stock opened at $284.49 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $291.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $287.90. McDonald’s has a 12-month low of $243.53 and a 12-month high of $317.90. The company has a market cap of $203.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.98, a PEG ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 0.73.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.82 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.79% and a negative return on equity of 175.42%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.19 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that McDonald’s will post 11.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,499 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.51, for a total transaction of $441,470.49. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $459,435.60. The trade was a 49.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.10, for a total transaction of $319,918.90. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 8,187 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,383,235.70. This trade represents a 11.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 8,605 shares of company stock worth $2,508,102 in the last 90 days. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McDonald’s

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the third quarter worth about $25,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Hara Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in McDonald’s in the third quarter worth $58,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in McDonald’s during the third quarter valued at $72,000. 70.29% of the stock is 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.