2023-07-18 12:53:37 ET
Truist singled out two restaurant stocks as potential candidates to see a Q2 earnings sales beat based on recent card data.
Analyst Jake Bartlett said McDonald's ( NYSE: MCD ) is setting up for a potential strong sales beat and has seen a slight acceleration to end the quarter. Of note, the Truist Card Data adjusted estimate for Q2 U.S. McDonald's system sales of $13.9B is +3.5% above consensus. Truist now sees Q2 U.S. same-store sales growth of 10.0% vs. the consensus mark of +8.9%.
The firm believes McDonald's ( MCD ) U.S. same-store sales momentum is being driven by strong marketing, including the successful Grimace Birthday Meal launched on June 12 and proceeded to go viral on social media. Truist has a Buy rating on MCD and new price target of $335.
Shake Shack ( SHAK ) is also called out as a potential earnings star, driven by strong end to the quarter. The Truist Card Data adjusted estimate for Q2 sales of $269M is +1.8% above the consensus estimate. Truist sees Q2 same-store sales growth for SHAK of +5.5% vs. +4.7% and the company's own guidance of low to mid single digits. Truist has a Buy rating on Shake Shack ( SHAK ) and a boosted price target of $90.
McDonald's ( MCD ) was down 0.56% on Tuesday at 12:50 p.m., while Shake Shack ( SHAK ) was up 0.88% .
More on restaurant stocks:
- McDonald's: Still A Buy
- Starbucks jolts: Slower recovery in China and more battling with the baristas union
- Consumer stocks are in the spotlight with student loan repayments and food disinflation in the mix
- Seeking Alpha's Quant Ratings across all restaurant stocks
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Restaurant check: Grimace boost for McDonald's, Shake Shake flying strong into earnings