McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) Given New $353.00 Price Target at Citigroup

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) had its target price lowered by Citigroup from $360.00 to $353.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the fast-food giant’s stock. Citigroup’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 17.79% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on MCD. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on McDonald’s from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Loop Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $342.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.30.

McDonald’s Price Performance

Shares of McDonald’s stock opened at $299.68 on Thursday. McDonald’s has a 1 year low of $243.53 and a 1 year high of $326.32. The firm has a market cap of $214.11 billion, a PE ratio of 26.31, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $304.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $298.72.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.73% and a negative return on equity of 181.63%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that McDonald’s will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at McDonald’s

In related news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.75, for a total transaction of $84,225.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 7,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,214,275.25. The trade was a 3.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Tiffanie L. Boyd sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.27, for a total transaction of $309,270.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,720,778.28. This represents a 15.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 27,497 shares of company stock worth $8,461,400 over the last ninety days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of McDonald’s

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MCD. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s in the third quarter worth $25,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in McDonald’s during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Collier Financial bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Company Profile

McDonald’s Corp. engages in the operation and franchising of restaurants. It operates through the following segments: U.S., International Operated Markets, and International Developmental Licensed Markets and Corporate. The U.S. segment focuses its operations on the United States. The International Operated Markets segment consists of operations and the franchising of restaurants in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and the U.K.