ISRG vs MCD: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of Intuitive Surgical, Inc. and McDonald's Corporation — fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals.
Updated 2026-09-25.
Intuitive Surgical, Inc. · Healthcare
$399.52
+22.4% upside to fair value
Med Conviction
Grade B
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 |
ISRG |
MCD |
| Current Price |
$399.52 |
$252.78 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$488.97 |
$355.71 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
+22.4%
|
+40.7%
|
| Market Cap |
$141.1B |
$179.6B |
| Forward P/E |
—
|
—
|
| EV / EBITDA |
30.7x
|
15.5x
|
| Price / Sales |
12.8x
|
6.5x
|
| Price / FCF |
44.0x
|
23.1x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+18.5%
|
+3.8%
|
| Gross Margin |
66.7%
|
57.4%
|
| Operating Margin |
31.3%
|
45.8%
|
| Return on Equity |
17.8%
|
-561.2%
|
| Dividend Yield |
0% |
2.94% |
| FCF Yield |
2.28%
|
4.32%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Strong Buy
|
Buy
|
Investment Thesis
Intuitive Surgical develops, produces, and commercializes the da Vinci surgical system and the Ion endoluminal system, along with instruments, accessories, training, and digital solutions that drive a large installed-base and recurring-revenue model. Business quality is high: TTM gross margin of 66.7%, operating margin of 31.3%, net margin of 28.4%, ROE of 17.8%, and revenue growth of 18.5% with …
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 |
ISRG |
MCD |
| Zone Low |
$366.73 |
$266.78 |
| Zone High |
$415.62 |
$302.35 |
| In Buy Zone? |
Yes
|
Yes
|