McDonald’s price target lowered to $290 from $297 at Piper Sandler

Piper Sandler lowered the firm’s price target on McDonald’s (MCD) to $290 from $297 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares ahead of quarterly results. As it pertains to the upcoming earnings release specifically, the firm’s sense is that investors expect a Q4 U.S. same-store sales result that is in line with to slightly below the current consensus estimate of down 0.6%. With that said, Piper thinks the primary focus for the investment community right now has more to do with the Q1 2025 time period. From its seat, the firm thinks a Q1 “miss” is expected at this point, but the magnitude is still up for debate and could certainly matter here, as could management’s tone on the call.