KeyCorp Has Lowered Expectations for McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) Stock Price

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) had its price target lowered by KeyCorp from $305.00 to $280.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the fast-food giant’s stock. KeyCorp’s target price indicates a potential upside of 21.36% from the stock’s current price.

MCD has been the topic of several other research reports. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of McDonald’s from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $285.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. BTIG Research dropped their price objective on shares of McDonald’s from $350.00 to $295.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $295.00 target price (down from $310.00) on shares of McDonald’s in a report on Friday, September 25th. Finally, Argus decreased their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $320.00 to $310.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, McDonald’s has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $297.76.

McDonald’s Price Performance

NYSE MCD opened at $230.71 on Tuesday. McDonald’s has a 1-year low of $229.20 and a 1-year high of $341.75. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $256.66 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $275.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $163.26 billion, a PE ratio of 18.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.44.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The fast-food giant reported $3.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.32 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.13 billion. McDonald’s had a negative return on equity of 572.06% and a net margin of 31.72%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.19 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that McDonald’s will post 12.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of McDonald’s during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,359,276,000. Diamant Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of McDonald’s by 30,979.0% during the 1st quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,596,340 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $806,917,000 after acquiring an additional 2,587,986 shares during the last quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP boosted its holdings in McDonald’s by 9,867.5% during the 4th quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 2,541,008 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $776,608,000 after acquiring an additional 2,515,515 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in McDonald’s by 49.9% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,104,337 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $948,779,000 after acquiring an additional 1,033,041 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its holdings in McDonald’s by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,983,997 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $10,997,789,000 after acquiring an additional 959,140 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Valuation and potential recovery: KeyCorp maintained an “overweight” rating while lowering its price target to $280, implying substantial upside from recent levels. Historical analysis also notes that McDonald’s has recovered from major selloffs in the past, potentially supporting longer-term investors. McDonald’s Given New Price Target at KeyCorp
• Positive Sentiment: Promotional activity continues: The return of the Monopoly promotion, including a $1 million prize and digital gameplay, along with new menu launches, could provide a modest traffic and engagement boost. McDonald’s Monopoly returns
• Neutral Sentiment: Capital structure clarification: McDonald’s negative book value is described as a deliberate result of substantial shareholder returns and leveraged financing rather than evidence of immediate financial distress. McDonald’s negative shareholder equity
• Negative Sentiment: Antitrust lawsuit over AI pricing: A proposed federal class action alleges McDonald’s pricing tool shares nonpublic sales and pricing data among competing franchisees, potentially facilitating coordinated price increases. McDonald’s says the system only makes recommendations and franchisees set prices independently, but the case creates legal, regulatory and reputational risk. McDonald’s sued over AI pricing tool
• Negative Sentiment: Franchisee resistance: U.S. franchisees are reportedly objecting to restaurant and menu upgrades costing at least $800,000 per location. The dispute could slow the turnaround strategy, raise franchisee financial strain and complicate execution. McDonald’s franchisees push back on remodeling costs
• Negative Sentiment: Estimates and U.S. demand concerns: Analysts have reduced forecasts and price targets amid worries about value-conscious consumers, slowing U.S. sales and uncertainty following the company’s investor-day strategy. These concerns are weighing more heavily than the potential benefits of promotions and long-term recovery.

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.