In the latest trading session, McDonald's (MCD) closed at $318.53, marking a +1.12% move from the previous day. The stock outpaced the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.54%. Elsewhere, the Dow saw an upswing of 1.05%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq appreciated by 0.56%.
Shares of the world's biggest hamburger chain witnessed a gain of 3.87% over the previous month, beating the performance of the Retail-Wholesale sector with its gain of 3.66%, and the S&P 500's gain of 0.74%.
Investors will be eagerly watching for the performance of McDonald's in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company's earnings report is set to be unveiled on February 11, 2026. The company is forecasted to report an EPS of $3.02, showcasing a 6.71% upward movement from the corresponding quarter of the prior year. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $6.83 billion, up 6.86% from the year-ago period.
MCD's full-year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of $12.1 per share and revenue of $26.69 billion. These results would represent year-over-year changes of +3.24% and 0%, respectively.
Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for McDonald's. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the business outlook.
Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. To take advantage of this, we've established the Zacks Rank, an exclusive model that considers these estimated changes and delivers an operational rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, spanning from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), boasts an impressive track record of outperformance, audited externally, with #1 ranked stocks yielding an average annual return of +25% since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.32% higher within the past month. McDonald's is holding a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now.
In terms of valuation, McDonald's is presently being traded at a Forward P/E ratio of 23.69. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 19, which means McDonald's is trading at a premium to the group.
We can additionally observe that MCD currently boasts a PEG ratio of 3.18. Comparable to the widely accepted P/E ratio, the PEG ratio also accounts for the company's projected earnings growth. MCD's industry had an average PEG ratio of 2.06 as of yesterday's close.
The Retail - Restaurants industry is part of the Retail-Wholesale sector. Currently, this industry holds a Zacks Industry Rank of 205, positioning it in the bottom 17% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank assesses the vigor of our specific industry groups by computing the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks incorporated in the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
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McDonald's Corporation (MCD): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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