Zacks Research Comments on McDonald’s Co.’s Q2 2024 Earnings (NYSE:MCD)

McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) – Equities research analysts at Zacks Research cut their Q2 2024 earnings estimates for McDonald’s in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, April 16th. Zacks Research analyst H. Ray now anticipates that the fast-food giant will post earnings per share of $3.17 for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $3.22. The consensus estimate for McDonald’s’ current full-year earnings is $12.33 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for McDonald’s’ Q3 2024 earnings at $3.32 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $12.25 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $2.99 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $3.33 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $3.47 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $3.32 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $13.11 EPS.

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. The business had revenue of $6.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.45 billion. McDonald’s had a net margin of 33.22% and a negative return on equity of 171.96%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.59 earnings per share.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on MCD. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $291.00 to $341.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $340.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $320.00 target price on shares of McDonald’s in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Finally, BTIG Research cut shares of McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $319.72.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

NYSE MCD opened at $271.99 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $196.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.71. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $283.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $280.72. McDonald’s has a one year low of $245.73 and a one year high of $302.39.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MCD. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in McDonald’s by 103.4% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 413 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $102,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its position in McDonald’s by 7.7% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 69,824 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $17,266,000 after buying an additional 5,007 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its stake in McDonald’s by 4.8% during the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 516,408 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $127,697,000 after purchasing an additional 23,643 shares during the period. Stevens Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in McDonald’s during the first quarter worth about $1,108,000. Finally, Equitable Holdings Inc. increased its stake in McDonald’s by 59.7% during the first quarter. Equitable Holdings Inc. now owns 9,338 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $2,309,000 after purchasing an additional 3,490 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.38, for a total transaction of $312,533.62. Following the transaction, 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 filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.46%. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 57.74%.

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.