Wedbush Issues Positive Estimate for McDonald’s Earnings

McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) – Stock analysts at Wedbush boosted their Q4 2024 EPS estimates for shares of McDonald’s in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, October 30th. Wedbush analyst N. Setyan now expects that the fast-food giant will post earnings of $2.93 per share for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $2.90. Wedbush has a “Outperform” rating and a $295.00 price objective on the stock. The consensus estimate for McDonald’s’ current full-year earnings is $11.78 per share.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.82 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 178.99% and a net margin of 31.79%. McDonald’s’s revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.19 earnings per share.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on MCD. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Loop Capital reissued a “buy” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Robert W. Baird cut McDonald’s from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $320.00 to $290.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America boosted their price target on McDonald’s from $321.00 to $324.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on McDonald’s from $284.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $319.46.

McDonald’s Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of McDonald’s stock opened at $295.24 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $298.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $275.78. The firm has a market cap of $211.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.92, a P/E/G ratio of 3.85 and a beta of 0.73. McDonald’s has a 12 month low of $243.53 and a 12 month high of $317.90.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 7.6% in the first quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,471 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,389,000 after acquiring an additional 598 shares in the last quarter. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC grew its position in shares of McDonald’s by 4.5% during the first quarter. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC now owns 1,155 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $326,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the first quarter worth approximately $303,000. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in McDonald’s by 3.1% in the first quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 16,166 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $4,558,000 after acquiring an additional 484 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norden Group LLC grew its holdings in McDonald’s by 31.7% during the 1st quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 5,064 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,428,000 after acquiring an additional 1,219 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $292.38, for a total value of $321,325.62. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 10,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,036,366.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 2,346 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total transaction of $727,260.00. Following 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 10,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,036,366.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 34,097 shares of company stock worth $10,256,818 over the last quarter. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $1.77 dividend. This represents a $7.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.40%. This is a positive change from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.65%.

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.