Morgan Stanley Raises McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) Price Target to $340.00

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) had its price objective increased by Morgan Stanley from $296.00 to $340.00 in a research note published on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the fast-food giant’s stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on MCD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Argus upgraded McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $295.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Monday, July 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on McDonald’s from $295.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $305.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $315.69.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $314.75 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $293.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $273.48. McDonald’s has a fifty-two week low of $243.53 and a fifty-two week high of $315.36. The company has a market cap of $226.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.72, a PEG ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 0.73.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The fast-food giant reported $2.97 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.07 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $6.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.62 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 178.68% and a net margin of 32.25%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.17 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that McDonald’s will post 11.71 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald’s Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.25%. This is a boost from McDonald’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.10%.

Insider Transactions at McDonald’s

In related news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 11,727 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.03, for a total value of $3,518,451.81. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 49,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,966,996.55. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total value of $285,740.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 13,681 shares in the company, valued at $3,557,060. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 11,727 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.03, for a total transaction of $3,518,451.81. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 49,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,966,996.55. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 34,097 shares of company stock worth $10,221,233. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McDonald’s

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Kings Path Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC grew its position in McDonald’s by 32.3% during the first quarter. Keener Financial Planning LLC now owns 176 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the second quarter valued at $59,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the first quarter worth about $69,000. Hedge funds and other 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.