Piper Sandler upgraded the fast food giant to "overweight" from "neutral"
McDonald's Corp (NYSE:MCD) is up 0.7% to trade at fresh record high of $270 this morning, after the fast food giant earned an upgrade from Piper Sandler to "overweight" from "neutral," as well a price-target hike to $282 from $232. The analyst in question said the company should see continued outperformance in the sector, and that it is positioned to fulfill consumer demand for burgers and drive-thru experiences, despite recent cost pressures and operational challenges.
Today's bull note is made even more impressive by the fact that analysts were already optimistic toward McDonald's stock coming into today. Of the 25 firms in coverage, 17 called the security a "buy" or better, while the remaining eight carried a lukewarm "hold" rating.
The equity looks like it could still benefit from a shift in the options pits, however. MCD's 10-day put/call volume ratio of 1.03 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) stands higher than 94% of readings from the last year. This means long puts have been getting picked up at a faster-than-usual clip of late.
Now might be a good opportunity to speculate on McDonald's stock with options. The security sports a Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) of 13%, which sits in the 6th percentile of its annual range. In simpler terms, options traders' volatility expectations aren't high at the moment.
The security has been steadily climbing since bouncing off the $244 level in December. The 10-day moving average has been guiding the shares higher for several weeks, while just below the 20-day moving average contained the stock's mid-December pullback. Over the past nine months, MCD has added 19%.