Why These 5 Stocks Are in the Spotlight on Thursday

3. McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) has declined 1.6% as of 11:13 AM ET following a downgrade from Jim Sanderson at Northcoast. The analyst downgraded McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) stock from a Buy to a Neutral rating and removed his last target price of $297. Sanderson highlighted that the shutting down of operations in Russia and Ukraine would adversely impact McDonald’s Corporation’s (NYSE:MCD) bottom line for years. McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) has been operating in Russia and Ukraine for decades, and during 2021, the stores in these countries contributed $300 million to the operating profits. Closing down stores for even a quarter would lower McDonald’s EPS by eight cents. The burger giant has closed down 850 locations in Russia and 100 locations in Ukraine without a clear timeline as to when these stores will re-open. Out of the 924 hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, 57 held a stake in McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) as of Q4 2021.