Wedbush Raises McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) Price Target to $330.00

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) had its price target raised by Wedbush from $320.00 to $330.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the fast-food giant’s stock. Wedbush also issued estimates for McDonald’s’ Q2 2025 earnings at $3.12 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $3.39 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $12.37 EPS.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on MCD. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on McDonald’s from $297.00 to $290.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of McDonald’s from $350.00 to $342.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $285.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Guggenheim lowered McDonald’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, McDonald’s has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.61.

McDonald’s Stock Performance

McDonald’s stock opened at $310.16 on Tuesday. McDonald’s has a twelve month low of $243.53 and a twelve month high of $317.90. The firm has a market cap of $222.27 billion, a PE ratio of 27.23, a P/E/G ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.74. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $291.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $291.56.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83. McDonald’s had a net margin of 31.79% and a negative return on equity of 175.42%. Equities analysts anticipate that McDonald’s will post 11.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $1.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.28%. McDonald’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.16%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Desiree Ralls-Morrison sold 3,409 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.15, for a total value of $989,121.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 9,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,807,201.25. This represents a 26.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,499 shares of McDonald’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.95, for a total value of $436,134.05. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at $453,882. The trade was a 49.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 7,406 shares of company stock worth $2,150,857. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McDonald’s

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MCD. Riversedge Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of McDonald’s by 2.0% during the third quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC now owns 1,686 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $513,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Proquility Private Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in McDonald’s by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Proquility Private Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,472 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $1,057,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC increased its holdings in McDonald’s by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 1,300 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $396,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. GDS Wealth Management raised its position in McDonald’s by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. GDS Wealth Management now owns 2,504 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock valued at $762,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boltwood Capital Management boosted its stake in McDonald’s by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 1,882 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock worth $546,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

About McDonald’s

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, Russia, Spain, and the U.K.