Zacks Research Comments on McDonald's Co.'s Q1 2024 Earnings (NYSE:MCD)

McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) - Analysts at Zacks Research decreased their Q1 2024 earnings per share estimates for McDonald's in a research report issued on Tuesday, April 16th. Zacks Research analyst H. Ray now forecasts that the fast-food giant will post earnings per share of $2.71 for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $2.72. The consensus estimate for McDonald's' current full-year earnings is $12.35 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for McDonald's' Q4 2024 earnings at $3.04 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $3.30 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $14.91 EPS.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The fast-food giant reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.83 by $0.12. McDonald's had a negative return on equity of 171.96% and a net margin of 33.22%. The company had revenue of $6.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.45 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.59 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis.

A number of other analysts have also commented on MCD. Citigroup dropped their price target on McDonald's from $312.00 to $297.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $330.00 price target on shares of McDonald's in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $320.00 price target on shares of McDonald's in a report on Monday, February 5th. Evercore ISI reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $330.00 price target on shares of McDonald's in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $325.00 price target on shares of McDonald's in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $319.72.

McDonald's Price Performance

Shares of MCD stock traded up $4.52 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $269.95. The company had a trading volume of 3,244,022 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,246,766. McDonald's has a 12 month low of $245.73 and a 12 month high of $302.39. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $283.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $280.69. The company has a market cap of $194.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.71.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McDonald's

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in McDonald's by 106,340.3% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,235,890 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $5,069,234,000 after purchasing an additional 19,217,818 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of McDonald's in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,684,899,000. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of McDonald's by 141,160.9% in the 4th quarter. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC now owns 5,613,710 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $1,664,521,000 after acquiring an additional 5,609,736 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of McDonald's by 10,702.5% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,174,426 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $644,739,000 after acquiring an additional 2,154,297 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in shares of McDonald's by 1,189.7% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,191,692 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $541,962,000 after acquiring an additional 2,021,754 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.29% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at McDonald's

In other McDonald's news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,099 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The stock was 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 owns 18,075 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,140,168.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

McDonald's Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio is 57.74%.

About McDonald's

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.