Yesterday, we heard about some new changes coming to fast food giant McDonald’s (MCD). Among these was a change in policy on sauce packets. New policies now allow for just one free sauce packet per six nuggets. This does change a bit by store, especially when larger quantities of nuggets are purchased. Still, this latest fracas did little to upset investors, based on the nearly 1.5% gain seen in McDonald’s stock in Tuesday afternoon’s trading.
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The rules are spreading, suggesting that there is a larger corporate policy at work here. A four-piece order or a six-piece order gets one sauce included, and a 20-piece nugget order would land you four sauces. This is a positive development; after all, a 20-piece order at one sauce per six would leave two nuggets completely unsauced if divided evenly. Including that one extra sauce, therefore, makes sense.
But this is not stopping customers from complaining. Some find the policy “kinda strict,” pointing out that it was not exactly difficult to use two sauces in the course of a six-piece order. Another noted that this is not the first time McDonald’s has been stingy with sauces before later reconsidering. But with shrinkflation running wild over the United States, it does feel like this is just one more example.
Return of the Pokemon?
Another point recently revealed was that McDonald’s was considering bringing back the Pokemon Happy Meal. Given that this year is the 30th anniversary of the franchise, it was reasonable to think that McDonald’s might take an interest in some cross-promotion opportunities.
But originally, reports suggested that the Pokemon meals would come out in February. February came and went, but no Pokemon meal. March did likewise. In fact, we are almost in May now, and it is unclear when—if ever—the Pokemon meals will come out. There is no official word on when the meals will drop, but with over six months left to the year, there is still time for Pokemon to make its appearance.
Is McDonald’s Stock a Good Buy?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on MCD stock based on 14 Buys and 12 Holds assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 7.72% loss in its share price over the past year, the average MCD price target of $347.78 per share implies 18.06% upside potential.
