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 2026-07-20.
Intuitive Surgical, Inc. · Healthcare
$388.97
+45.0% upside to fair value
Grade B
High Quality
VS
McDonald's Corporation · Consumer Cyclical
$267.71
+20.6% upside to fair value
Med Conviction
Grade C+
High Quality
QuantHub Verdict
ISRG has more upside to fair value
(+45.0%).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
See all research →
Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
ISRG |
MCD |
| Current Price |
$388.97 |
$267.71 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$564.01 |
$322.85 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
+45.0%
|
+20.6%
|
| Market Cap |
$137.8B |
$190.2B |
| Forward P/E |
46.5x
|
—
|
| EV / EBITDA |
31.4x
|
16.4x
|
| Price / Sales |
13.0x
|
6.9x
|
| Price / FCF |
48.6x
|
27.0x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+23.0%
|
+9.4%
|
| Gross Margin |
66.3%
|
57.4%
|
| Operating Margin |
30.5%
|
46.0%
|
| Return on Equity |
17.0%
|
-433.9%
|
| Dividend Yield |
0% |
2.75% |
| FCF Yield |
2.06%
|
3.7%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Strong Buy
|
Buy
|
Investment Thesis
Intuitive Surgical, Inc. operates in the healthcare sector, specializing in medical devices with a strong focus on robotic-assisted surgery systems. The company demonstrates high business quality with a durable competitive moat supported by a 17.0% return on equity, robust gross margin of 66.3%, and solid operating margin of 30.5%. Revenue and earnings growth in the most recent quarter were impre…
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 |
ISRG |
MCD |
| Zone Low |
$423.01 |
$242.14 |
| Zone High |
$479.41 |
$274.42 |
| In Buy Zone? |
Yes
|
Yes
|