Wedbush Lowers McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) Price Target to $300.00

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) had its target price lowered by research analysts at Wedbush from $330.00 to $300.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the fast-food giant’s stock. Wedbush’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 9.25% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on MCD. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Oppenheimer reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Friday, January 5th. UBS Group dropped their price target on McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on McDonald’s from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $315.00 price target on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $318.69.

McDonald’s Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:MCD traded down $0.99 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $274.61. 2,046,799 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,250,887. The stock has a market cap of $198.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.75, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.71. McDonald’s has a twelve month low of $245.73 and a twelve month high of $302.39. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $282.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $281.37.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The fast-food giant reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.83 by $0.12. McDonald’s had a net margin of 33.22% and a negative return on equity of 171.96%. The firm had revenue of $6.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.45 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.59 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that McDonald’s will post 12.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total value of $303,750.72. Following the sale, the insider now owns 16,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,696,517.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total transaction of $312,533.62. Following the sale, the insider now owns 18,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,140,168.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total value of $303,750.72. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 16,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,696,517.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McDonald’s

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MCD. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC raised its position in McDonald’s by 51.9% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 123 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC bought a new position in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors 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.