McDonald's (MCD) is looking to expand its footprint in Russia by increasing its store count by 15%, or about 40 new locations, in an effort to tap the growing demand for fast food. McDonald's competes with Wendy's (WEN), Subway, Burger King (BKC), and Yum! Brands (YUM) in the fast-food market and is the market leader with about 19% share. The company also competes with Starbucks (SBUX) in the specialty coffee market.

We have $78.40 price estimate for McDonald's stock, which is slightly ahead of market price.

Continue reading McDonald's Invests in Russian Growth as Part of EM Focus

McDonald's Invests in Russian Growth as Part of EM Focus originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 02 Apr 2011 12:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Movie theaters don't want you to know how many calories are in the popcorn and that's why they are resisting FDA attempts at requiring disclosures. If the FDA required scales in front of the popcorn counters, or that all popcorn be sold with free carrots, I might side with the theaters, but requiring one of those small nutritional information panels on the back of the popcorn bucket -- eaten in a darkened theater -- hardly seems oppressive to me.

I'm all for free choice and I don't want to take away anyone's jumbo popcorn as they go to the movies -- unless, of course, I get to eat some of it.

Continue reading What Movie Theaters Don't Want You to Know About the $6 Popcorn!

What Movie Theaters Don't Want You to Know About the $6 Popcorn! originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 27 Mar 2011 14:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

McDonald's(MCD) competes with Wendy's(WEN), Burger King, and Yum! Brands(YUM) in the fast food market and is the market leader with about 19% share. The company also competes with Starbucks(SBUX) in the specialty coffee market.

McDonald's owns and franchises restaurants across the globe with over 32,000 restaurants in 117 countries. Of these, roughly 80% were operated by franchisees, with the balance being company-owned. We estimate that franchisee rent & fees accounts for 62% of McDonald's stock value with franchisee royalties generating an additional 29%. The remaining 9% comes from company-owned restaurants.

Continue reading McDonald's Sales Momentum into January Could Prompt Stock Upside

McDonald's Sales Momentum into January Could Prompt Stock Upside originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 22 Feb 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Is the McDonald's Slump Ending?

Is the McDonald's Slump Ending? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 08 Feb 2011 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Blue-chip burger baron McDonald's (MCD) was in focus Monday morning after the company unveiled its fourth-quarter earnings. The fast-food chain reported net income of $1.24 billion, or $1.16 per share, slightly improved from its year-ago profit of $1.22 billion, or $1.11 per share. Revenue for the quarter climbed 4% to $6.21 billion.

The fourth-quarter results were more or less in line with Wall Street's expectations, but the same can't be said of its December sales. Global same-store sales rose 3.7% across the board, led by an 8.9% gain in the Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa (APMEA). U.S. same-store sales increased 2.6% in December, while sales at restaurants open at least 13 months declined 0.5% in Europe.

Continue reading McDonald's Dips After Weak December Sales

McDonald's Dips After Weak December Sales originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 24 Jan 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

With earnings season in full swing, the FOMC meeting on interest rates, the GDP estimate, and housing numbers due out, the coming week is shaping up to be a busy one. So here's a peek at what's on the economic calendar.

Monday

Quarterly reports from American Express (AXP) and McDonald's (MCD) will highlight Monday. Amgen (AMGN), CSX (CSX), Halliburton (HAL) and Texas Instruments (TXN) are also expected to report strong earnings results.

Continue reading Week in Preview: GDP, FOMC Meeting, Housing Data and Lots of Earnings

Week in Preview: GDP, FOMC Meeting, Housing Data and Lots of Earnings originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 23 Jan 2011 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Coca-Cola: Sell Before It Drops -- or Not?

Coca-Cola: Sell Before It Drops -- or Not? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 06 Jan 2011 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Fast-food entity Sonic (SONC) closed Tuesday's regular session at a quote of $10.10. That represented a gain of a mere two pennies going into the after-the-bell earnings release. I guess investors weren't too excited by the prospects of the data.

Shares didn't do much in the extended session either, but popped about 4% at the opening bell Wednesday. For a longer-term perspective, take a look at the one-year chart. The stock seems to be doing its best to climb back to higher levels. Returning to the 52-week high of $13.11 would be nice.

Continue reading Sonic Beats Earnings Estimates Despite Weak Sales

Sonic Beats Earnings Estimates Despite Weak Sales originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 05 Jan 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading McDonald's Down Today -- Time to Sell?

McDonald's Down Today -- Time to Sell? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 04 Jan 2011 16:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading McDonald's Global Same-Store Sales Increase

McDonald's Global Same-Store Sales Increase originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 08 Dec 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

McDonald's (MCD) is expected to report November sales on December 8. Overall option implied volatility of 18 is near its 26-week average of 20, according to Track Data, suggesting nondirectional price movement.

Proshares UltraShort Barclays 20 Year Treasury ETF (TBT) overall option implied volatility of 37 is above its 26-week average of 34, according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.

Options Update is by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com.

Options Update: McDonald's Volatility Low as Shares Near Record High originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 04 Dec 2010 09:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Serious Money: AIG Takeover by Fairholme Capital?

Serious Money: AIG Takeover by Fairholme Capital? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 30 Nov 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Among the quarterly results scheduled for this holiday-shortened week, investors may be thankful for the earnings results from Tyson Foods (TSN). The Arkansas-based poultry and meat producer reported on its sustainability efforts and also was named McDonalds' (MCD) supplier of the year during its fiscal fourth quarter. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters forecast earnings for that period to have doubled from a year ago to 56 cents per share.

Tyson is also expected to post revenue of $7.8 billion for the three months that ended in September, which is 7.4% more than in the same period of fiscal 2009. And the consensus estimate for the full year calls for earnings of $2.08 per share (+87.0%) and revenue of $28.7 billion (+7.3%). Tyson's earnings have been better than expected in recent quarters, beating consensus estimates by as much as 24 cents per share.

Continue reading Week in Preview: Tyson Foods, Analog Devices, Deere Serve Up Earnings

Week in Preview: Tyson Foods, Analog Devices, Deere Serve Up Earnings originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 21 Nov 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This company has been on my recommended list for longer than any other company in the four and a half years that I have been writing for BloggingStocks -- with only one exception, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG). The company is EZCorp (EZPW), which beat the Street again with third quarter earnings per share of $0.56, three cents better than the analyst estimate.

Revenue for the quarter was $198.2 million, which tops the estimate of $191.01 million. The company projects 2011 earnings higher too: EPS of about $2.35 vs. an estimate of $2.25. EZCorp grew earnings by 33% and increased its footprint by 127 stores through new construction and acquisitions.

Continue reading Chasing Value: Apple's Great, but This Stock Is Better!

Chasing Value: Apple's Great, but This Stock Is Better! originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 05 Nov 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading No Toy for You! San Francisco Bans Happy Meal Toys

No Toy for You! San Francisco Bans Happy Meal Toys originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 03 Nov 2010 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Yet again, McDonald's (MCD) has asserted itself as the Big Mac Daddy of the fast-food world, reporting that its third-quarter earnings increased 10%. Proving that it does not rely solely on hamburgers and cheeseburgers, McDonald's attributed the impressive performance to blended-ice beverages and international growth.

McDonald's pulled in an impressive $1.29 per share ($1.39 billion) during the quarter, much better than last year's same-quarter results of $1.15 per share ($1.26 billion). Quarterly revenue also increased, checking in at $6.3 billion, which is 4.3% better than a year ago.

Continue reading McDonald's Earnings Rise on Beverages and International Growth

McDonald's Earnings Rise on Beverages and International Growth originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 21 Oct 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Options Update: McDonald's Volatility Low at 19; Shares Near Record High into EPS originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 21 Oct 2010 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Yum! Brands Earnings: Profit Tops Projection in Q3

Yum! Brands Earnings: Profit Tops Projection in Q3 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 06 Oct 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Chipotle Mexican Grill: Buy or Sell?

Chipotle Mexican Grill: Buy or Sell? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 20 Sep 2010 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Yum! Brands (YUM), a restaurant entity whose multiple concepts compete with McDonald's (MCD) and Wendy's/Arby's Group (WEN), gave shareholders some great news this week: their dividend is going up! According to the press release, the quarterly payment is now 19% higher, coming in at 25 cents per share.

Not bad at all. Looks like management is feeling good about future cash flows. As we all know, dividend increases can be indicative of fundamental fiscal strength. And I like it when a dividend is backed by a strong portfolio that is well-recognized by consumers. Establishments like KFC and Taco Bell are strong trademarks.

Continue reading Yum! Brands Boosts Dividend, but Is It Time to Buy Shares?

Yum! Brands Boosts Dividend, but Is It Time to Buy Shares? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 18 Sep 2010 09:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.