MCD vs MSFT: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of McDonald's Corporation and Microsoft Corporation — fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals.
Updated 2026-07-20.
McDonald's Corporation · Consumer Cyclical
$267.71
+20.6% upside to fair value
Med Conviction
Grade C+
High Quality
VS
Microsoft Corporation · Technology
$379.40
+45.0% upside to fair value
Grade A
High Quality
QuantHub Verdict
MSFT has more upside to fair value
(+45.0%).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
See all research →
Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
MCD |
MSFT |
| Current Price |
$267.71 |
$379.40 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$322.85 |
$550.13 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
+20.6%
|
+45.0%
|
| Market Cap |
$190.2B |
$2,818.3B |
| Forward P/E |
—
|
22.5x
|
| EV / EBITDA |
16.4x
|
14.2x
|
| Price / Sales |
6.9x
|
8.9x
|
| Price / FCF |
27.0x
|
38.6x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+9.4%
|
+18.3%
|
| Gross Margin |
57.4%
|
68.3%
|
| Operating Margin |
46.0%
|
46.8%
|
| Return on Equity |
-433.9%
|
33.1%
|
| Dividend Yield |
2.75% |
0% |
| FCF Yield |
3.7%
|
2.59%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Buy
|
Strong Buy
|
Investment Thesis
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…
Microsoft Corporation is a leading global technology company specializing in cloud computing, productivity software, and enterprise platforms. The company benefits from a very strong and widening competitive moat supported by scale, switching costs, an integrated ecosystem, and disciplined capital allocation including large buybacks and dividends. Its business quality is high, demonstrated by a 3…
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
MCD |
MSFT |
| Zone Low |
$242.14 |
$412.60 |
| Zone High |
$274.42 |
$467.61 |
| In Buy Zone? |
Yes
|
Yes
|