McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) Earns Outperform Rating from Evercore ISI

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reiterated by stock analysts at Evercore ISI in a research note issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $330.00 target price on the fast-food giant’s stock. Evercore ISI’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 17.98% from the company’s previous close.

MCD has been the subject of a number of other research reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on McDonald’s from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. StockNews.com downgraded McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Bank of America increased their price target on McDonald’s from $291.00 to $341.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on McDonald’s from $327.00 to $310.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $320.60.

McDonald’s Trading Up 0.4 %

McDonald’s stock traded up $1.09 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $279.71. 456,213 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,148,533. The business’s 50 day moving average is $291.07 and its 200 day moving average is $280.92. McDonald’s has a 52 week low of $245.73 and a 52 week high of $302.39. The company has a market capitalization of $201.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.18, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.72.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The fast-food giant reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.83 by $0.12. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 171.96% and a net margin of 33.22%. The business had revenue of $6.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.45 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.59 earnings per share. McDonald’s’s revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that McDonald’s will post 12.38 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total transaction of $312,533.62. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,075 shares in the company, valued at $5,140,168.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McDonald’s

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 51.9% during the third quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 123 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Retirement Group LLC bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About McDonald’s

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.