This post was originally published on this site
McDonald’s has lagged the market this year.
The world’s largest burger chain has added 5 percent since January, its smallest quarterly gain in three quarters, and less than half the advance of the broader market.
One technician sees a big move breaking it out of its funk.
“McDonald’s possibly breaking out here. I’m liking, or I’m loving, the trade — to steal from the commercial,” Todd Gordon, founder of TradingAnalysis.com, said Tuesday on CNBC’s “Trading Nation.”
Since the stock’s consolidation in the final months of 2018, Gordon predicts a renewed surge to break past the $190 level. The stock last hit a record high of $190.88 in late November.
“We’re seeing higher lows, indicating buyers are becoming more aggressive as we move on up. I do think we should get the breakout, eventually targeting the $200 region,” said Gordon.
A move to $200 would mark a record and implies 7 percent upside from Tuesday’s close.
To take advantage of that move, Gordon is buying the May 3 expiration 190/200 call spread for roughly $2.78. This trade pays off when McDonald’s ends the contract above $200. Gordon is betting the stock could run the last leg of that move higher when it reports earnings on April 30.
“I remain net long in my portfolio. I hold McDonald’s in my longer-term equity portfolio, so I like the way the stock acts,” Gordon said.
