Morgan Stanley Cuts McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) Price Target to $320.00

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) had its target price trimmed by Morgan Stanley from $327.00 to $320.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the fast-food giant’s stock.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on MCD. Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $345.00 to $340.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Evercore ISI reiterated an outperform rating and issued a $330.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Citigroup reduced their target price on McDonald’s from $327.00 to $310.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Erste Group Bank restated a hold rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on McDonald’s from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, McDonald’s presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $320.17.

McDonald’s Stock Down 0.5 %

NYSE MCD opened at $267.39 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $192.79 billion, a PE ratio of 23.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.71. McDonald’s has a 52 week low of $245.73 and a 52 week high of $302.39. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $284.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $280.75.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The fast-food giant reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.83 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $6.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.45 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 33.22% and a negative return on equity of 171.96%. The business’s revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.59 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that McDonald’s will post 12.35 EPS for the current year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were given a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.74%.

Insider Activity

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total value of $312,533.62. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,075 shares in the company, valued at $5,140,168.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McDonald’s

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MCD. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in McDonald’s by 103.4% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 413 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $102,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in McDonald’s by 7.7% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 69,824 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $17,266,000 after acquiring an additional 5,007 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in McDonald’s by 4.8% in the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 516,408 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $127,697,000 after acquiring an additional 23,643 shares during the period. Stevens Capital Management LP acquired a new position in McDonald’s in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,108,000. Finally, Equitable Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in McDonald’s by 59.7% in the first quarter. Equitable Holdings Inc. now owns 9,338 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $2,309,000 after acquiring an additional 3,490 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

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.