Q2 2024 EPS Estimates for McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) Decreased by Analyst

McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) – Equities researchers at Wedbush dropped their Q2 2024 earnings per share estimates for shares of McDonald’s in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, May 1st. Wedbush analyst N. Setyan now anticipates that the fast-food giant will post earnings of $3.10 per share for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $3.15. Wedbush has a “Outperform” rating and a $300.00 price objective on the stock. The consensus estimate for McDonald’s’ current full-year earnings is $12.25 per share. Wedbush also issued estimates for McDonald’s’ Q4 2024 earnings at $3.05 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $12.20 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $3.40 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $3.26 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $13.14 EPS.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Guggenheim cut their target price on McDonald’s from $325.00 to $315.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on McDonald’s from $305.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $320.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on McDonald’s from $337.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on McDonald’s from $291.00 to $341.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $317.74.

McDonald’s Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $270.32 on Friday. McDonald’s has a twelve month low of $245.73 and a twelve month high of $302.39. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $280.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $282.21. The company has a market capitalization of $194.90 billion, a PE ratio of 22.95, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.71.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The fast-food giant reported $2.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by ($0.01). McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 180.54% and a net margin of 33.36%. The business had revenue of $6.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.63 EPS. McDonald’s’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.47%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.71%.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total value of $312,533.62. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 18,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,140,168.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total value of $312,533.62. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 18,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,140,168.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.64, for a total value of $303,750.72. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 16,977 shares in the company, valued at $4,696,517.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Independent Wealth Network Inc. grew its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. now owns 863 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Concentric Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Concentric Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,551 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $756,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Paragon Capital Management Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Paragon Capital Management Ltd now owns 1,374 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $407,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Mechanics Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Mechanics Financial Corp now owns 5,331 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,581,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Finally, FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,268 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $376,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.