Loop Capital Reaffirms “Buy” Rating for McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD)

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reissued by stock analysts at Loop Capital in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $342.00 price objective on the fast-food giant’s stock. Loop Capital’s target price points to a potential upside of 16.02% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on MCD. Argus upgraded McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $296.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $310.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on McDonald’s from $284.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on McDonald’s from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $320.65.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of MCD stock opened at $294.78 on Friday. McDonald’s has a 1-year low of $243.53 and a 1-year high of $317.90. The firm has a market cap of $211.25 billion, a PE ratio of 25.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.95 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a 50-day moving average of $294.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $284.94.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The fast-food giant reported $3.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.05. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.79% and a negative return on equity of 175.42%. The firm had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.82 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.19 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that McDonald’s will post 11.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.38, for a total value of $321,325.62. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,385 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,036,366.30. This trade represents a 9.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 3,409 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,807,201.25. This represents a 26.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,050 shares of company stock valued at $3,556,688. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of McDonald’s

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MCD. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,394,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in McDonald’s by 0.9% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,564,359 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,694,403,000 after acquiring an additional 49,106 shares in the last quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp lifted its holdings in McDonald’s by 58.9% in the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 138,102 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $35,194,000 after acquiring an additional 51,210 shares during the period. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 49,186 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $14,978,000 after purchasing an additional 2,997 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Weiss Asset Management LP acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth $16,870,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.