CAT vs MCD: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of Caterpillar Inc. and McDonald's Corporation — fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals.
Updated 2026-09-21.
Caterpillar Inc. · Industrials
$808.99
-2.2% upside to fair value
Med Conviction
Grade C
High Quality
VS
McDonald's Corporation · Consumer Cyclical
$252.78
+40.7% upside to fair value
Med Conviction
Grade A
High Quality
QuantHub Verdict
MCD has more upside to fair value
(+40.7%).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
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Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
CAT |
MCD |
| Current Price |
$808.99 |
$252.78 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$790.88 |
$355.71 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
-2.2%
|
+40.7%
|
| Market Cap |
$372.6B |
$179.6B |
| Forward P/E |
—
|
—
|
| EV / EBITDA |
23.6x
|
15.5x
|
| Price / Sales |
5.0x
|
6.5x
|
| Price / FCF |
41.4x
|
23.1x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+24.0%
|
+3.8%
|
| Gross Margin |
33.9%
|
57.4%
|
| Operating Margin |
17.5%
|
45.8%
|
| Return on Equity |
54.1%
|
-561.2%
|
| Dividend Yield |
0.76% |
2.94% |
| FCF Yield |
2.41%
|
4.32%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Buy
|
Buy
|
Investment Thesis
Caterpillar is the world's premier manufacturer of heavy construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas power units, and industrial gas turbines, organized across Construction Industries, Resource Industries, Energy & Transportation, and Financial Products, with 118,000 employees and a century-old brand. Business quality is high: return on equity of 54.1%, TTM operating margin of 17.5%…
McDonald's operates a globally scaled, approximately 95% franchised restaurant system with 46,028 restaurants in more than 100 countries, combining a powerful consumer brand, real-estate-backed franchise economics, supplier scale and digital loyalty reach. Business quality is high despite meaningful leverage: TTM gross, operating and net margins are 57.4%, 45.8% and 31.7%, respectively, while loy…
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
CAT |
MCD |
| Zone Low |
$593.16 |
$266.78 |
| Zone High |
$672.25 |
$302.35 |
| In Buy Zone? |
No
|
Yes
|