McDonald's
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McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food restaurant chain. Founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald in San Bernardino, California, the company has grown into one of the world's largest restaurant chains.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0, revision of 19 Oct 2026.
What stands out
- Sales have grown about 7.0% a year for five years, so each $1 of sales in FY2020 is about $1.40 now.Revenue growth over 5–10 years: +7.0% a year
- McDonald's kept about 46 cents of operating profit from each $1 of sales in FY2025.Operating margin (operating income ÷ revenue): 46.1%
- For every $1 of reported profit over 5 years, about $0.86 turned up as spare cash.Free cash flow (operating cash flow − capex), and FCF ÷ net income: $7.2B
Worth digging into
- At last year's pace, McDonald's's spare cash would pay off its net debt in about 5.6 years.Net debt ÷ EBITDA or ÷ FCF, plus interest cover: 5.6x FCF
From filed figures and the weekly screener snapshot, 30 Oct 2026. Observations to check in the tabs below, not advice.
What has the price done?
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Press and drag across the chart to see the change between two points. Source: Yahoo Finance, delayed. Bars are daily and prices are adjusted for splits, not dividends. Past returns don't predict future returns.
Dividends
Full chart
TradingView's advanced chart, with indicators and drawing tools. It loads when you scroll to it.
How does it make money?
What it does is in the oven
We haven't typed up McDonald's's business and region split yet. Every figure comes from the company's own results, so this takes a little time.
See companies we've covered ›History and context
McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food restaurant chain. Founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald in San Bernardino, California, the company has grown into one of the world's largest restaurant chains. At the end of 2025, the McDonald's system comprised 45,356 restaurants in more than 100 countries, approximately 95% of which were operated by franchisees.
The McDonald brothers introduced their streamlined food-production system, later known as the Speedee Service System, during the 1940s. The Golden Arches design was introduced in 1953. Businessman Ray Kroc became a McDonald's franchise agent in 1955 and opened a restaurant in Des Plaines, Illinois. He purchased the brothers' ownership stake in the company in 1961 and oversaw its domestic and international expansion.
From Wikipedia's article McDonald's, the lead section as of the revision of 19 Oct 2026, retrieved 1 Nov 2026. Text under CC BY-SA 4.0, pronunciation guides removed. Wikipedia can be edited by anyone; the company's own filings are the primary source.
What it actually sells Soon
A product-by-product guide to McDonald's: what each one is, who buys it, and how much it brings in, in plain English and in the company's own terms. We're starting with the companies that are hardest to picture, like Broadcom.
Moat not rated yet
We haven't rated McDonald's's moat. A rating needs at least five years of returns against the cost of capital, plus evidence for each of the five lenses.
How we rate moats ›Is it a good business at a fair price?
What each method implies
Ranges, not targetsThe five questions, and the price
Six checks from the annual reports. A flag marks a reason to dig deeper, not a verdict.
- 1. Is it growing?Within the guide
+7.0% a year
Revenue growth over 5–10 years
Revenue $19.2B in FY2020 to $26.9B in FY2025; +0.6% a year over 10 years. It fell in 1 of the last 5 years.
Sales have grown about 7.0% a year for five years, so each $1 of sales in FY2020 is about $1.40 now.
What to look for Steady growth, not one lucky year.
Source: FY2020 10-K, filed 23 Feb 2021; FY2025 10-K, filed 24 Feb 2026.
- 2. Is it profitable?Within the guide
46.1%
Operating margin (operating income ÷ revenue)
FY2025 operating margin. 5-year average 44.4%, range 40.4% to 46.1%.
McDonald's kept about 46 cents of operating profit from each $1 of sales in FY2025.
What to look for Stable or rising. It's cleaner than net income, which one-off items and tax can distort.
Source: FY2025 10-K, filed 24 Feb 2026.
- 3. Is the profit real cash?Within the guide
$7.2B
Free cash flow (operating cash flow − capex), and FCF ÷ net income
FY2025 free cash flow: operating cash flow $10.6B less capex $3.4B. Over 5 years FCF was 86% of net income.
For every $1 of reported profit over 5 years, about $0.86 turned up as spare cash.
What to look for FCF positive and growing, and close to net income over time.
Source: FY2025 10-K, filed 24 Feb 2026.
- 4. Is it a good business?Within the guide
28.5% ROIC
Return on invested capital (ROIC); ROE for banks
FY2025 ROIC. 5-year average 30.4%; above 10% in 5 of 5 years. ROIC here is our calculation from the 10-K figures: operating income after tax (at the year's effective rate, or 21% where that rate is meaningless) over shareholders' equity plus borrowings less cash and short-term investments at the start of the year. Leases are left out.
Each $1 tied up in the business has earned about 30 cents a year after tax.
What to look for Clearly above the cost of capital (roughly 8–10%). Sustained 15%+ usually means a moat.
Source: FY2025 10-K, filed 24 Feb 2026.
- 5. Can it survive a bad year?Reason to dig deeper
5.6x FCF
Net debt ÷ EBITDA or ÷ FCF, plus interest cover
FY2025 year end: borrowings $40.8B, cash and short-term investments $774.0M, net debt $40.0B, 3.1x EBITDA. Operating income covers interest 7.8x.
At last year's pace, McDonald's's spare cash would pay off its net debt in about 5.6 years.
What to look for Debt payable from about 3 years of FCF or less, interest covered many times.
Source: FY2025 10-K, filed 24 Feb 2026.
- 6. Is the price right?
3.9% FCF yield
FCF yield or EV/EBIT, and price against a cash-flow value
Market cap $182.7B. FCF yield 3.9% on FY2025 free cash flow. EV/EBIT 18.0x on FY2025 operating income. The valuation sheet's default story values it at US$166.10–US$313.67 a share (middle US$232.03); at US$242.97, its 16 Oct 2026 price, the price is +4.7% against the middle.
At this price, each $100 of shares comes with about $3.93 of last year's spare cash. On the sheet's default story the price sits above the middle of its value range, by 5%. Change the story and that moves.
What to look for Pay less than a cash-flow value estimate, with a margin of safety.
Source: Price $258.12, Yahoo Finance weekly snapshot, 30 Oct 2026; 708M shares, 10-Q 30 Jun 2026; FY2025 10-K, filed 24 Feb 2026; Stock valuation, 16 Oct 2026.
US figures: each company's Form 10-K as tagged on SEC EDGAR, collected 19 Oct 2026. Free cash flow is operating cash flow less purchases of property and equipment. Borrowings exclude leases. For education only. Not financial advice.
Ten years of financials
FY2016 to FY2025, in US dollars.
Source: McDonald's, Form 10-K for each year as first filed, via SEC EDGAR XBRL. Latest: FY2025 10-K, filed 24 Feb 2026. Later restatements aren't applied.
Discounted cash flow, from Stock valuation
Ten years of free cash flow to the firm, from McDonald's's latest figures and Damodaran's industry averages (Restaurant/Dining). It's one story told with numbers, so it comes as a range.
- Value range, the default story$166.10–$313.67Middle $232.03 a share
- Price, 16 Oct 2026 close$242.97+4.71% ▲ against the middle
- What the price implies5.7% a yearGrowth in years 2–5 that makes value equal the price; the story uses 5.0%
To be worth today's price, McDonald's would need to grow sales about 5.7% a year in years 2–5. One way to read this is to ask whether that sounds believable.
The story's assumptions
- Revenue, last 12 months
- $27,702M
- Operating margin now
- 46.2%
- Revenue growth, year 1
- 4.7%
- Revenue growth, years 2–5
- 5.0%
- Growth after year 10
- 5.1%
- Target operating margin, by year 5
- 46.0%
- Sales to capital, years 1–5 / 6–10
- 1.51 / 1.51
- Tax rate now / after year 10
- 21.4% / 25.0%
- Cost of capital, years 1–5
- 8.1%
- Cost of capital after year 10
- 8.7%
- Return on capital after year 10
- 16.7%
- Chance of failure
- 0.0%
Value per share as two inputs change (revenue growth, years 2–5 down, target operating margin across)
| Revenue growth, years 2–5 | 41.0% | 46.0% | 51.0% |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2.0% | $166.10 | $193.15 | $220.19 |
| 5.0% | $200.36 | $232.03 | $263.71 |
| 8.0% | $239.67 | $276.67 | $313.67 |
Middle cell: the default story. Each step is 3 points of growth or 5 points of margin.
| Year | Growth | Revenue | Margin | Operating income | Tax rate | After-tax income | Reinvestment | Free cash flow | Cost of capital | Present value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4.7% | $29,004M | 46.2% | $13,394M | 21.4% | $10,528M | $861M | $9,667M | 8.1% | $8,939M |
| 2 | 5.0% | $30,454M | 46.1% | $14,050M | 21.4% | $11,043M | $959M | $10,085M | 8.1% | $8,623M |
| 3 | 5.0% | $31,977M | 46.1% | $14,738M | 21.4% | $11,584M | $1,006M | $10,578M | 8.1% | $8,363M |
| 4 | 5.0% | $33,576M | 46.0% | $15,460M | 21.4% | $12,151M | $1,057M | $11,095M | 8.1% | $8,111M |
| 5 | 5.0% | $35,255M | 46.0% | $16,217M | 21.4% | $12,747M | $1,110M | $11,637M | 8.1% | $7,867M |
| 6 | 5.0% | $37,024M | 46.0% | $17,031M | 22.1% | $13,264M | $1,169M | $12,094M | 8.3% | $7,552M |
| 7 | 5.0% | $38,888M | 46.0% | $17,889M | 22.8% | $13,803M | $1,232M | $12,570M | 8.4% | $7,244M |
| 8 | 5.1% | $40,854M | 46.0% | $18,793M | 23.6% | $14,365M | $1,299M | $13,066M | 8.5% | $6,941M |
| 9 | 5.1% | $42,926M | 46.0% | $19,746M | 24.3% | $14,952M | $1,370M | $13,582M | 8.6% | $6,645M |
| 10 | 5.1% | $45,111M | 46.0% | $20,751M | 25.0% | $15,563M | $1,444M | $14,119M | 8.7% | $6,356M |
| After 10 | 5.1% | $47,407M | 46.0% | $21,807M | 25.0% | $16,355M | $4,988M | $11,367M | 8.7% | $142,141M |
- Present value of years 1–10
- $76,641M
- Present value after year 10
- $142,141M
- Less debt, plus cash
- −$53,782M
- Value of equity
- $165,000M
- Shares
- 711M
- Value per share, default story
- $232.03
Company figures: McDonald's Q2 2026 filings, 12 months to Jun 2026; debt includes $14.7B of lease liabilities; price at 16 Oct 2026 close. Industry averages: Aswath Damodaran, January 2026 US data. Risk-free rates: US 10-year Treasury 5.09% and Singapore 10-year 2.34%, 16 Oct 2026. Equity risk premium: Damodaran's implied premium of 4.20%, 1 Oct 2026. Company figures are the latest reported before 19 Oct 2026. Data as of 16 Oct 2026. The sheet follows the spreadsheets Aswath Damodaran publishes; it is not affiliated with or endorsed by him. A model's value is not a price target. For education only. Not financial advice.
Who owns it, and what's the mood?
Tracked investors and insiders
Trades in McDonald's by the people we follow: Warren Buffett and Michael Burry (13F), Grab's officers (Form 4) and Nancy Pelosi (House reports). They show what happened, often weeks later, not what to copy.
| Who | Did | Size | When | Disclosed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ro KhannaUS House member, CA-17 (dependent child's trade) | BoughtShares | $15,001 – $50,000 | 11 Sep 2026 | 7 Oct 202626 days after the trade |
| Ro KhannaUS House member, CA-17 (spouse's trade) | SoldShares | $15,001 – $50,000 | 4 Sep 2026 | 7 Oct 202633 days after the trade |
Sources: SEC EDGAR 13F-HR and Form 4 filings, and the US House Clerk's Periodic Transaction Reports, checked 30 Oct 2026. 13F values are the quarter-end value, not the price paid. All tracked trades ›
- Largest shareholdersSoonThe biggest holders from 13F filings and the annual proxy statement.—
- Chief executive and board holdingsSoonShares held by the CEO and directors, from the proxy statement and Form 4s.—
- Short interestSoonHow many shares are sold short, from exchange short-interest reports.—
Crowd favourite or value trap?
Neither is a label we can put on a stock. These are signs worth looking into, each from a figure on this page.
Signs of a crowd-driven price
Meme stocks move on attention more than on results: big swings, a price far from cash-flow value, thin profits.
0 of 4 signs
- NoSwings at least twice as much as the marketBeta 0.42, 5 years of monthly returns
- NoUp more than 100%, or down more than 50%, in a year1-year price change −11.28%
- NoPrice more than 50% above the valuation sheet's middle valuePrice +5% against the sheet's default story, 16 Oct 2026
- NoThin profits: operating margin under 5%, or a lossFY2025 operating margin 46.1%
Signs of a value trap
A value trap looks cheap because the business is shrinking or earning less than its capital costs.
0 of 4 signs
- NoLooks cheap: P/E under 12 or FCF yield over 8%P/E 21.6x, FCF yield 3.9%
- NoRevenue lower than five years agoRevenue +7.0% a year over 5 years
- NoReturns below the cost of capital5-year average ROIC 30.4% against 10.0%
- NoMore than 30% below its 52-week high−24.5% from the 52-week high
Prices, beta and 1-year change: Yahoo Finance weekly snapshot, 30 Oct 2026. Business figures: the five questions under Valuation and financials. A sign is a reason to dig deeper, not a verdict. For education only. Not financial advice.
Read it through a lens
Price data: Yahoo Finance, delayed. Company figures: each company's own filings, dated where they appear. A ticker on this site is not a recommendation. For education only. Not financial advice.