A number of stock research firms have changed their ratings and price targets for McDonald’s (NYSE: MCD) during the last seven days:

  • McDonald’s had its price target lowered by analysts at Lazard to $101.00. They now have a “buy” rating on the stock.
  • McDonald’s had its “outperform” rating reaffirmed by analysts at Raymond James. They now have a $95.00 price target on the stock.
  • McDonald’s had its price target lowered by analysts at Deutsche Bank from $100.00 to $97.00. They now have a “buy” rating on the stock. They wrote, “While MCD’s 2012 results have been much weaker than we thought likely, we are sticking with our Buy rating as the cash-stable franchised business and 3.5% div. yld. suggest limited downside from here. Further, if MCD’s trends are an indicator as to the overall state of consumer spending globally, this stock may increasingly be viewed as a good place to hide. Lowering ests. and PT. Maintain Buy.”
  • McDonald’s had its price target lowered by analysts at Sterne Agee from $112.00 to $101.00. They now have a “buy” rating on the stock. They wrote, “While disappointed in MCD’s recent results, we believe some of the issues were self-inflicted due to a lack of value messaging (U.S.) and less significant new product introductions. Looking forward, we believe that MCD is making the needed changes to advertising and expect to see new product launches in the N-T. We are maintaining our BUY rating as we believe that MCD will remain a market share winner over the L-T given superior marketing power, menu innovation and a major remodel program.”
  • McDonald’s had its price target lowered by analysts at JPMorgan Chase from $103.00 to $101.00. They now have an “overweight” rating on the stock. They wrote, “Maintain Overweight. We continue to recommend MCD as a long-term core holding in the restaurant space for low risk/solid absolute return, with a ~5% FCF yield, including a current ~3.5% dividend yield. High global AUVs and MCD’s rent/royalty model allow for significant reinvestment and company capital contribution for remodels and other incremental initiatives that further the cycle of profitability and reinvestment. A 1% global change in comps is worth 2% to EPS vs. global QSR at 2-4% (ex-ARCO) and casual dining at 4-7%. Similarly, a 100-bp change in global company store margins is worth 2% annually vs. global QSR at 0-6% (ex-ARCO) and casual dining at 11-13%.”
  • McDonald’s had its price target lowered by analysts at UBS AG to $96.00. They now have a “buy” rating on the stock.
  • McDonald’s had its “neutral” rating reaffirmed by analysts at Zacks. They now have a $92.00 price target on the stock. Zacks‘ analyst wrote, “McDonald’s is faced with the macroeconomic headwinds especially in Europe, decelerating growth in Asia, intense competition in the U.S. as well as unfavorable currency translation. Company specific headwinds such as increased SG&A expenses coupled with rising tax rates also remain concerns. However, in such a backdrop, we remain optimistic about the company’s persistent efforts to emerge out of such tough times. Some of the company’s value-driven initiatives seem to have paid off in the third quarter of 2012. Share repurchase activity and yearly hike in dividends remain other positives of the stock. Also, McDonald’s has historically enjoyed moderate growth prospects with its exposure to faster-growing international markets, a strong balance sheet and consistent earnings. Near-term commodity inflation outlook also does not look too alarming. Hence, we maintain Neutral recommendation on the stock.”

McDonald’s remained flat at $86.80 during trading on Thursday. McDonald’s has a 52-week low of $85.92 and a 52-week high of $102.22. The company has a market cap of $87.532 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.35.

McDonald’s Corporation franchises and operates McDonald’s restaurants in the global restaurant industry.