Back to top

Image: Bigstock

McDonald's (MCD) Gains But Lags Market: What You Should Know

Read MoreHide Full Article

In the latest trading session, McDonald's (MCD - Free Report) closed at $236.94, marking a +0.1% move from the previous day. This move lagged the S&P 500's daily gain of 1.97%. Meanwhile, the Dow gained 1.88%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 0.24%.

Coming into today, shares of the world's biggest hamburger chain had lost 6.62% in the past month. In that same time, the Retail-Wholesale sector lost 9.37%, while the S&P 500 lost 9.93%.

Wall Street will be looking for positivity from McDonald's as it approaches its next earnings report date. On that day, McDonald's is projected to report earnings of $2.59 per share, which would represent a year-over-year decline of 6.16%. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $5.77 billion, down 6.98% from the prior-year quarter.

For the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $9.83 per share and revenue of $22.76 billion, which would represent changes of +5.93% and -1.99%, respectively, from the prior year.

Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for McDonald's. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the company's business outlook.

Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.02% higher. McDonald's is holding a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now.

In terms of valuation, McDonald's is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 24.08. This valuation marks a premium compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 18.74.

We can also see that MCD currently has a PEG ratio of 3.08. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. Retail - Restaurants stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 1.99 based on yesterday's closing prices.

The Retail - Restaurants industry is part of the Retail-Wholesale sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 195, which puts it in the bottom 23% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

To follow MCD in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


McDonald's Corporation (MCD) - free report >>

Published in