McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) Sets New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

Shares of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) hit a new 52-week low on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $250.18 and last traded at $249.3360, with a volume of 785040 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $252.78.

McDonald’s News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting McDonald’s this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BTIG reaffirmed its “buy” rating and maintained a $350 price target, implying substantial upside from the current trading level. The call suggests the firm expects McDonald’s brand strength and recovery initiatives to support a rebound.
• Positive Sentiment: McDonald’s is preparing for its September 23 investor day, where it may provide new financial targets through 2030 and more detail on its recovery strategy. Investors are looking for evidence that the company can reignite traffic and sales. McDonald’s likely to issue new financial targets through 2030
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s delivery platform generates more than $20 billion in systemwide sales across approximately 90% of restaurants. Its plan to route 30% of delivery sales through the McDonald’s app by 2027 could improve customer engagement, data collection and digital economics. McDonald’s delivery push and app strategy
• Neutral Sentiment: Jefferies retained its positive stance but reduced its price target to $325 from $350, highlighting that management still must convince investors a sales recovery is achievable. McDonald’s target falls to $325
• Negative Sentiment: Discounting, including an $8 Big Mac meal promotion, may help restore traffic but risks pressuring restaurant-level margins. Record diesel costs could further raise distribution and franchisee expenses, creating a headwind for profitability. McDonald’s pitches $8 Big Macs amid high diesel costs

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler set a $286.00 price objective on McDonald’s in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. KeyCorp dropped their target price on McDonald’s from $315.00 to $305.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of McDonald’s from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $295.00 to $290.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Argus lowered their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $310.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $317.91.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $266.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $285.37. The firm has a market cap of $176.35 billion, a PE ratio of 20.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.41.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The fast-food giant reported $3.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.32 by $0.06. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.72% and a negative return on equity of 572.06%. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.13 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.19 earnings per share. McDonald’s’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that McDonald’s Corporation will post 12.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.86 per share. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.44%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McDonald’s

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Ascentis Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in McDonald’s by 4,008.8% during the 2nd quarter. Ascentis Wealth Management LLC now owns 84,230 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $22,768,000 after buying an additional 82,180 shares during the last quarter. Borer Denton & Associates Inc. raised its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 16.9% in the second quarter. Borer Denton & Associates Inc. now owns 13,859 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $3,746,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Peterson Wealth Services lifted its position in shares of McDonald’s by 3,294.5% in the fourth quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 11,779 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $3,600,000 after acquiring an additional 11,432 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 7.1% during the second quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 1,471,725 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $397,822,000 after acquiring an additional 97,060 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 84.4% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 35,510 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $10,853,000 after acquiring an additional 16,252 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Company Profile

McDonald’s Corporation is a global quick-service restaurant company that operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald’s brand. Its restaurants serve a menu that includes hamburgers, cheeseburgers, chicken sandwiches, French fries, breakfast items, desserts, salads, beverages and coffee. Offerings vary by market, and many locations provide drive-thru service, delivery and digital ordering through the McDonald’s mobile app.

The company operates through a heavily franchised business model, with restaurants owned and operated by independent franchisees, affiliates and the company itself.