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 2026-07-20.
Caterpillar Inc. · Industrials
$940.12
-39.4% upside to fair value
Grade C
High Quality
VS
McDonald's Corporation · Consumer Cyclical
$267.71
+20.6% upside to fair value
Med Conviction
Grade C+
High Quality
QuantHub Verdict
MCD has more upside to fair value
(+20.6%).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
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Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
CAT |
MCD |
| Current Price |
$940.12 |
$267.71 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$569.47 |
$322.85 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
-39.4%
|
+20.6%
|
| Market Cap |
$433.1B |
$190.2B |
| Forward P/E |
46.6x
|
—
|
| EV / EBITDA |
29.7x
|
16.4x
|
| Price / Sales |
6.1x
|
6.9x
|
| Price / FCF |
37.8x
|
27.0x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+22.2%
|
+9.4%
|
| Gross Margin |
32.5%
|
57.4%
|
| Operating Margin |
16.6%
|
46.0%
|
| Return on Equity |
47.5%
|
-433.9%
|
| Dividend Yield |
0% |
2.75% |
| FCF Yield |
2.64%
|
3.7%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Hold
|
Buy
|
Investment Thesis
Caterpillar Inc. is a leading global manufacturer of agricultural and construction machinery, operating within the Industrials sector. The company demonstrates high business quality with a durable competitive moat supported by strong brand recognition, cost advantages, and intangible assets. It posted robust revenue growth of 22.2% and earnings growth of 27.3% in the most recent quarter, reflecti…
McDonald's is a global quick-service restaurant franchisor and real-estate platform whose approximately 95% franchised restaurant base generates unusually high-margin, recurring royalty and rent income, supporting a 46.0% operating margin and 31.6% net margin. Business quality is high because its brand, global purchasing scale, nearly 29,000 drive-thrus, digital ecosystem and 210 million 90-day a…
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
CAT |
MCD |
| Zone Low |
$427.10 |
$242.14 |
| Zone High |
$484.05 |
$274.42 |
| In Buy Zone? |
No
|
Yes
|