Morgan Stanley Issues Positive Forecast for McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) Stock Price

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

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on MCD. Wedbush raised their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised 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. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on McDonald’s from $297.00 to $290.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Citigroup raised their target price on McDonald’s from $336.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.61.

McDonald’s Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $310.16 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $222.27 billion, a PE ratio of 27.23, a PEG ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.74. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $291.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $291.56. McDonald’s has a twelve month low of $243.53 and a twelve month high of $317.90.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 175.42% and a net margin of 31.79%. As a group, research analysts expect that McDonald’s will post 11.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.50, for a total value of $321,457.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 9,286 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,716,155. The trade was a 10.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 3,409 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.15, for a total value of $989,121.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 9,675 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,807,201.25. The trade was a 26.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 7,406 shares of company stock worth $2,150,857 over the last three months. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McDonald’s

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new stake in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA bought a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Collier Financial bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in McDonald’s in the third quarter worth $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

About McDonald’s

McDonald’s Corp. engages in the operation and franchising of restaurants. It operates through the following segments: U.S., International Operated Markets, and International Developmental Licensed Markets and Corporate. The U.S. segment focuses its operations on the United States. The International Operated Markets segment consists of operations and the franchising of restaurants in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Russia, Spain, and the U.K.