McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) Given New $297.00 Price Target at Citigroup

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) had its price target trimmed by Citigroup from $312.00 to $297.00 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the fast-food giant’s stock.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on MCD. StockNews.com downgraded shares of McDonald’s from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. HSBC assumed coverage on McDonald’s in a research report on Wednesday, December 20th. They issued a buy rating and a $317.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial cut their price objective on McDonald’s from $345.00 to $340.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on McDonald’s from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $319.72.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of MCD opened at $271.99 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $196.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.51, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.71. McDonald’s has a 1 year low of $245.73 and a 1 year high of $302.39. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $283.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $280.72.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The fast-food giant reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $6.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.45 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 171.96% and a net margin of 33.22%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.59 EPS. Equities analysts expect that McDonald’s will post 12.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.46%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 57.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total value of $312,533.62. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,140,168.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.27% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McDonald’s

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new stake in McDonald’s in the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC grew its position in 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 purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

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.