McDonald’s Co. Expected to Earn Q1 2025 Earnings of $2.91 Per Share (NYSE:MCD)

McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) – Analysts at Wedbush dropped their Q1 2025 earnings estimates for McDonald’s in a report released on Wednesday, May 1st. Wedbush analyst N. Setyan now anticipates that the fast-food giant will earn $2.91 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $2.97. Wedbush currently has a “Outperform” rating and a $300.00 target price on the stock. The consensus estimate for McDonald’s’ current full-year earnings is $12.18 per share. Wedbush also issued estimates for McDonald’s’ Q3 2025 earnings at $3.57 EPS.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Guggenheim decreased their target price on McDonald’s from $325.00 to $315.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Barclays cut their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $343.00 to $340.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $315.00 to $300.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Argus reissued a “hold” rating on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Monday, March 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $317.74.

McDonald’s Trading Down 1.1 %

NYSE MCD opened at $270.32 on Monday. McDonald’s has a twelve month low of $245.73 and a twelve month high of $302.39. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $279.53 and a 200 day moving average of $282.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $194.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.95, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.71.

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

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 2.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.71%.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

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

Institutional Trading of McDonald’s

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MCD. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC increased its stake 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 buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management purchased a new position in McDonald’s during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC acquired a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth $38,000. 70.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.