MCD vs SBUX vs YUM Stock Comparison

Mcdonalds, Starbucks and Yum Brands Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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MCD Mcdonalds Corp
$248.49 +4.2% 1M -19.1% 1Y
Market cap
$177.91B
P/E
20.2x
Revenue (TTM)
$27.70B
Div. yield
0.03%
Quick-Service Restaurants Consumer Discretionary
5 wins
SBUX Starbucks Corp
$100.80 +7.1% 1M +18.0% 1Y
Market cap
$117.05B
P/E
59.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$38.34B
Div. yield
–
Quick-Service Restaurants Consumer Discretionary
2 wins
YUM Yum Brands Inc
$149.69 +6.4% 1M +2.3% 1Y
Market cap
$41.05B
P/E
18.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$8.72B
Div. yield
0.02%
Quick-Service Restaurants Consumer Discretionary
5 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Mcdonalds leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Mcdonalds 5, Yum Brands 5, Starbucks 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionMCDSBUXYUMLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $177.91B $117.05B $41.05B MCD
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 20.2x 59.0x 18.5x YUM
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 18.7x 41.1x 23.5x MCD
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +6.3% +4.5% +10.3% YUM
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 31.7% 5.2% 25.4% MCD
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 25.9% 31.4% 54.9% YUM
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.6x 2.1x 3.9x SBUX
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.03% 0.00% 0.02% MCD
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -19.1% +18.0% +2.3% SBUX
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +0.8%/yr -2.5%/yr +3.4%/yr YUM
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 19.9% 27.6% 25.5% MCD
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 50/100 34/100 52/100 YUM

Percentile Scorecard

MCDSBUXYUM

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisMCDSBUXYUM
Valuation 18 #41 of 50 6 #47 of 50 20 #40 of 50
Growth 39 #29 of 47 17 #39 of 47 65 #17 of 47
Profitability 100 #1 of 46 69 #15 of 46 98 #2 of 46
Financial Health 44 #29 of 51 42 #30 of 51 16 #43 of 51
Shareholder Returns 47 #18 of 33 34 #22 of 33 63 #13 of 33
Overall 50 34 52
  • MCD ranked among 53 companies in Restaurants
  • SBUX ranked among 53 companies in Restaurants
  • YUM ranked among 53 companies in Restaurants

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodMCDSBUXYUMSPY
1 month +4.2%+7.1%+6.4% -1.0%
3 months -6.1%-2.4%+0.4% +2.9%
6 months -17.0%+2.2%-6.6% +6.4%
Year to date -18.7%+19.7%-1.1% +11.4%
1 year -19.1%+18.0%+2.3% +13.1%
3 years -3.4%+6.5%+24.8% +79.4%
3 years, per year -1.2%+2.1%+7.7% +21.5%
5 years +4.2%-12.0%+18.3% +67.7%
5 years, per year +0.8%-2.5%+3.4% +10.9%
10 years +118.1%+88.0%+139.4% +255.2%
10 years, per year +8.1%+6.5%+9.1% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureMCDSBUXYUMSPY
Volatility, 1Y 19.9%27.6%25.5% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 20.4%25.0%25.1% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.000.530.00 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.960.650.09 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -32.3%-40.2%-24.2% -25.4%
From 52-week high -27.1%-7.1%-11.0% -2.5%
52-week high $341.06$108.55$168.16 $779.14
52-week low $230.86$79.60$135.80 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleMCDSBUXYUM
P/E now vs peer median 20.1xmedian 20.6x 57.9xmedian 20.6x 18.6xmedian 20.6x
P/S now vs peer median 6.3xmedian 1.1x 3.0xmedian 1.1x 4.7xmedian 1.1x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 14.3xmedian 13.3x 26.8xmedian 13.3x 17.8xmedian 13.3x
P/FCF now vs peer median 23.8xmedian 17.3x 31.6xmedian 17.3x 24.3xmedian 17.3x
P/B now vs peer median -171.9xmedian 3.1x -15.0xmedian 3.1x -5.7xmedian 3.1x
PEG now vs peer median 4.66median 1.04 -3.01median 1.04 1.08median 1.04

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsMCDSBUXYUM
Revenue $27.70B $38.34B $8.72B
Gross profit $24.86B – $5.94B
Operating income $12.80B $2.98B $2.70B
Net income $8.79B $1.98B $2.22B
Free cash flow $7.39B $3.64B $1.68B
EPS (diluted) $12.36 $1.73 $8.00
Cash & equivalents $822.00M $3.45B $674.00M
Total debt $162.65B $13.28B $12.28B
Shares (diluted) 711.10M 1.14B 277.00M
Enterprise value $172.73B $104.68B $37.93B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricMCDSBUXYUM
P/E 20.1x 57.9x 18.6x
P/FCF 23.8x 31.6x 24.3x
P/Operating cash flow 15.5x 23.0x 19.6x
P/S 6.3x 3.0x 4.7x
P/B -171.9x -15.0x -5.7x
P/Tangible book -171.9x -14.6x -5.2x
EV/EBITDA 14.3x 26.8x 17.8x
EV/EBIT 16.8x 41.8x 19.4x
EV/Revenue 7.8x 3.2x 6.0x
EV/FCF 29.1x 34.2x 31.2x
EV/Operating cash flow 18.9x 25.0x 25.2x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 4.66 -3.01 1.08

Growth

14 metrics
MetricMCDSBUXYUM
Revenue growth (1Y) 6.3% 4.5% 10.3%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 4.6% 3.1% 7.7%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 5.3% – 6.5%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 4.8% – 4.3%
Operating income growth (1Y) 7.3% -24.9% 10.5%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 5.2% -17.8% 6.8%
Net income growth (1Y) 4.7% -24.7% 54.8%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 3.2% -19.4% 16.0%
EPS growth (1Y) 5.7% -24.9% 57.1%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 4.3% -19.2% 17.3%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 15.8% 1.7% 13.6%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 9.1% -1.2% 9.6%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 18.0% 61.6% 9.5%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 8.3% 6.9% 9.5%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricMCDSBUXYUM
Gross margin 89.7% – 68.1%
EBITDA margin 54.4% 12.1% 33.7%
Operating margin 46.2% 7.8% 31.0%
Pretax margin 40.4% 8.0% 25.2%
Net margin 31.7% 5.2% 25.4%
FCF margin 26.7% 9.5% 19.3%
Operating cash flow margin 40.9% 13.0% 23.9%
Return on equity – – –
Return on assets 14.6% 6.7% 26.2%
Return on invested capital 25.9% 31.4% 54.9%
Return on capital employed 22.9% 15.3% 65.1%
Asset turnover 0.5x 1.3x 1.0x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.3x 2.5x 0.9x
Stock comp / revenue 0.6% 1.0% 0.8%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricMCDSBUXYUM
Debt / assets 66.5% 46.9% 141.4%
Debt / equity -39.0x -1.7x -1.7x
Net debt / EBITDA 2.6x 2.1x 3.9x
Debt / FCF 5.4x 3.6x 7.3x
Liabilities / assets 101.7% 127.1% 181.9%
Equity / assets -1.7% -27.1% -81.9%
Interest coverage 7.9x 5.4x –
Current ratio 1.1x 0.8x 0.6x
Quick ratio 0.8x 0.5x 0.3x
Cash ratio 0.2x 0.4x 0.2x
Altman Z-score 4.59 3.10 2.24

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricMCDSBUXYUM
Dividend yield 3.0% 2.5% 2.0%
Net buyback yield 1.2% -0.1% 2.2%
Shareholder yield 4.2% 2.4% 4.2%
Payout ratio (earnings) 59.5% – 36.4%
Payout ratio (FCF) 70.8% – 48.1%
Dividend growth (1Y) 4.6% – 4.8%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 6.3% – 6.9%

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusMCDSBUXYUM
Forward P/E 18.7xFY2026 41.1xFY2026 23.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $13.26FY2026 $2.45FY2026 $6.36FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +8.7%FY2026 +15.0%FY2026 +5.1%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +6.9% +22.0% +17.5%
Revenue, next fiscal year $29.26BFY2026 $35.65BFY2026 $9.16BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +8.8%FY2026 -4.1%FY2026 +11.6%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -3.7% +5.5% -2.5%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersMCDSBUXYUM
Held by institutions 74.2% 85.6% 88.7%
Institutions holding 3,473 2,399 1,435
Change in shares held, QoQ +0.4% +4.9% +3.6%
Institutions buying 1,534 1,096 626
Institutions selling 1,485 991 488
Buyers to sellers 1.03 1.11 1.28

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

MCDSBUXYUM
MCD 1.00 0.34 0.59
SBUX 0.34 1.00 0.32
YUM 0.59 0.32 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, MCD, SBUX and YUM?

Mcdonalds (MCD) is the largest by market capitalisation: Mcdonalds (MCD) $177.91B, Starbucks (SBUX) $117.05B, Yum Brands (YUM) $41.05B.

Which stock is cheaper, MCD, SBUX and YUM?

Yum Brands (YUM) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Mcdonalds (MCD) 20.2x, Starbucks (SBUX) 59.0x, Yum Brands (YUM) 18.5x). On next year's consensus earnings, Mcdonalds (MCD) is cheapest (Mcdonalds (MCD) 18.7x, Starbucks (SBUX) 41.1x, Yum Brands (YUM) 23.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Yum Brands (YUM) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Mcdonalds (MCD) +6.3%, Starbucks (SBUX) +4.5%, Yum Brands (YUM) +10.3%.

Which company is more profitable?

Mcdonalds (MCD) has the highest net margin (Mcdonalds (MCD) 31.7%, Starbucks (SBUX) 5.2%, Yum Brands (YUM) 25.4%). On return on invested capital, Yum Brands (YUM) leads (Mcdonalds (MCD) 25.9%, Starbucks (SBUX) 31.4%, Yum Brands (YUM) 54.9%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Starbucks (SBUX) returned the most: Mcdonalds (MCD) -19.1%, Starbucks (SBUX) +18.0%, Yum Brands (YUM) +2.3%. Over five years, Yum Brands (YUM) compounded fastest (Mcdonalds (MCD) +0.8%/yr, Starbucks (SBUX) -2.5%/yr, Yum Brands (YUM) +3.4%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Mcdonalds (MCD) has the highest dividend yield: Mcdonalds (MCD) 0.03%, Starbucks (SBUX) 0.00%, Yum Brands (YUM) 0.02%. Starbucks (SBUX) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Mcdonalds (MCD) has been the steadiest (Mcdonalds (MCD) 19.9%, Starbucks (SBUX) 27.6%, Yum Brands (YUM) 25.5%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, MCD, SBUX and YUM?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Mcdonalds (MCD) leads on 5. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.