MCD (McDonald's Corp) vs S&P 500 Comparison

MCD

S&P 500

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MCD

S&P 500

Difference

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MCD

S&P 500

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Compare the stock's returns with its benchmark index and competitors. Gain insights into its relative performance over time.

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S&P 500

MCD

SBUX

CMG

CPG

YUM

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Compare the stock's returns with its benchmark index and competitors. Gain insights into its relative performance over time.

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McDonald's Corp
Glance View

Economic Moat

Wide

Market Cap

209.4B USD

Industry

Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure

In the bustling world of global fast food, McDonald's Corporation stands as a towering testament to business acumen and operational consistency. Founded in 1940 by Richard and Maurice McDonald as a single restaurant in San Bernardino, California, the company has metamorphosed into a globally recognized giant, with thousands of outlets scattered across six continents. Ray Kroc, a visionary businessman, joined the company in 1955 and played a pivotal role in shaping McDonald's into a franchise model powerhouse. This model allowed for rapid, scalable growth, creating a symbiotic relationship between the corporation and independent franchisees, who run most of the McDonald’s restaurants around the world. McDonald’s derives a substantial portion of its revenue from franchisees through rent, royalties, and fees, all structured to encourage operational excellence and uniformity across stores, maintaining the brand's cohesive identity. The global reach of McDonald’s is not just a story of hamburgers and fries, but also of clever adaptation and shrewd market targeting. Its success is rooted in the standardization of its menu while introducing local flavors to cater to regional tastes, thereby broadening its appeal. Operational efficiency lies at the heart of its profitability, often embracing innovation in areas such as supply chain management and restaurant technology. McDonald's constantly refines its offerings and practices through a robust feedback loop that involves monitoring customer preferences and constantly adapting to health trends and consumer demand for convenience. The company’s revenue streams are diversified, benefiting not just from food sales but also through real estate investment, where McDonald's owns the land and buildings of its restaurants, leasing them to franchisees and garnering steady income. McDonald's has created an ecosystem that ensures customer loyalty and economic resilience, making it a formidable entity in the global restaurant industry.

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MCD Intrinsic Value

What is Intrinsic Value?

Economic Moat is a concept popularized by Warren Buffett to describe a company's durable competitive advantage. It represents the 'moat' that protects a company from competitors and helps it sustain profitability over the long term. Our analysis of the past 10 years showed that companies with a wide economic moat significantly outperformed the market, delivering +645% returns compared to +189% for the S&P 500.

Our research into Economic Moat performance spans the past 10 years and focuses on companies with a wide economic moat. For this analysis, we calculated the average stock price returns of these companies, comparing them to the performance of the S&P 500 index over the same period.

The results were compelling: wide moat stocks achieved a remarkable +645% average return, compared to +188% for the broader market. This difference highlights the long-term benefits of investing in businesses that can maintain their market position and pricing power over time.

Note: This research does not account for survivorship bias. Past performance is not indicative of future results.

Determining whether a company has an economic moat requires both a deep dive into financial metrics and a qualitative assessment of its competitive position. Our analysts conduct a rigorous evaluation that focuses on identifying structural advantages that enable a company to sustain profitability and defend its market share over the long term.

The process begins with an analysis of a company’s historical financial performance. We assess how consistently the company has generated returns above its cost of capital and whether those returns have been stable or improving. However, financial performance alone doesn’t reveal the full picture. To understand the sources of these advantages, we evaluate five key drivers of economic moats:

Network Effect: We analyze whether the value of a company’s product or service grows as its user base expands. Platforms like payment systems or marketplaces benefit from this self-reinforcing.

Switching Costs: We assess whether customers face significant costs or disruptions when switching to a competitor’s product or service. High switching costs create customer stickiness and provide pricing power.

Intangible Assets: Strong brands, patents, and regulatory licenses can protect a company’s market position by creating barriers for competitors or enabling premium pricing. For example, a well-recognized consumer brand may command higher customer loyalty and margins.

Efficient scale: Occurs when a market is optimally served by one or a few players, making it unprofitable for new entrants to compete. This typically happens in industries with high fixed costs or geographic constraints, such as utilities or pipelines.

Cost Advantage: Companies with structural cost advantages can produce goods or services at a lower cost than their competitors, enabling them to offer competitive pricing or maintain higher margins. These advantages often arise from economies of scale, superior supply chain management, or proprietary technology. Firms like Walmart leverage their massive scale to negotiate better terms with suppliers, allowing them to undercut competitors on price.

By examining these factors in combination with a company’s financial performance and market positioning, we classify each company into one of three categories:

This rigorous evaluation ensures that our moat ratings are both comprehensive and reliable, giving investors the tools they need to make well-informed, long-term decisions.

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MCD

vs

S&P 500

Stocks Performance
MCD vs S&P 500

Performance Gap
MCD vs S&P 500

Performance By Year
MCD vs S&P 500

Competitors Performance
McDonald's Corp vs Peers

McDonald's Corp
Glance View

Company

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MCD vs S&P 500

Stocks Performance MCD vs S&P 500

Performance Gap MCD vs S&P 500

Performance By Year MCD vs S&P 500

Competitors Performance McDonald's Corp vs Peers

McDonald's Corp Glance View

Company

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Stocks

MCD

vs

S&P 500

Stocks Performance
MCD vs S&P 500

Performance Gap
MCD vs S&P 500

Performance By Year
MCD vs S&P 500

Competitors Performance
McDonald's Corp vs Peers

McDonald's Corp
Glance View