Brokerages Set McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) PT at $323.43

McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty-eight research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $323.4348.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on MCD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $381.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $350.00 to $340.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of MCD stock opened at $302.25 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $215.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.90, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.50. McDonald’s has a one year low of $276.53 and a one year high of $326.32. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $306.00 and its 200-day moving average price is $305.63.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The fast-food giant reported $3.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.15 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $6.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 32.21% and a negative return on equity of 225.52%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.97 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that McDonald’s will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be issued a $1.86 dividend. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 1st. This is a positive change from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.77. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.67%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 2,487 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total value of $770,970.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 8,754 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,713,740. This trade represents a 22.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CMO Edith Morgan Flatley sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total transaction of $315,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 6,858 shares in the company, valued at $2,160,270. The trade was a 12.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 4,487 shares of company stock worth $1,395,970. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McDonald’s

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in McDonald’s by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 71,331,031 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $20,840,787,000 after acquiring an additional 921,936 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 0.8% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,828,352 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $10,175,800,000 after purchasing an additional 272,139 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 1.7% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 16,828,420 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $4,901,595,000 after purchasing an additional 276,065 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the second quarter worth about $2,780,712,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 16.8% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 9,341,460 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,917,993,000 after purchasing an additional 1,344,954 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

McDonald’s Company Profile

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, Spain, and the U.K.