How to buy McDonald’s (MCD) shares in Australia

McDonald’s (MCD) operates and franchises fast food restaurants globally. There are currently over 39,100 McDonald’s restaurants worldwide. In 2021, McDonald's launched its first meat-free burger, called the McPlant, made from pea and rice protein.

Have McDonald's's shares ever split?

McDonald's's shares were split on a 2:1 basis on 7 March 1999. So if you had owned 1 share the day before the split, the next day you would own 2 shares. This wouldn't directly have changed the overall worth of your McDonald's shares – just the quantity. However, indirectly, the new 50% lower share price could have impacted the market appetite for McDonald's shares which in turn could have impacted McDonald's's share price.

McDonald's shares at a glance

52-week range	US$240.6579 - US$315.9991
50-day moving average more info button	US$298.8488
200-day moving average more info button	US$279.73
Target price	US$321.5066
PE ratio more info button	25.5158
Dividend yield more info button	US$6.68 (2.39%)
Earnings per share (TTM) more info button	US$11.4

McDonald's share growth calculator

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McDonald's price performance over time

Historical closes compared with the last close of $290.23

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The value of your investments can fall as well as rise and you may get back less than you invested. Past performance is no indication of future results.

Is it a good time to buy McDonald's stock?

The technical analysis gauge below displays real-time ratings for the timeframes you select. However, this is not a recommendation. It represents a technical analysis based on the most popular technical indicators: Moving Averages, Oscillators and Pivots. Finder might not concur and takes no responsibility.

Is McDonald's under- or over-valued?

Valuing McDonald's stock is incredibly difficult, and any metric has to be viewed as part of a bigger picture of McDonald's's overall performance. However, analysts commonly use some key metrics to help gauge the value of a stock.

McDonald's's P/E ratio

McDonald's's current share price divided by its per-share earnings (EPS) over a 12-month period gives a "trailing price/earnings ratio" of roughly 26x. In other words, McDonald's shares trade at around 26x recent earnings.

That's relatively low compared to, say, the trailing 12-month P/E ratio for the NASDAQ 100 at the end of 2019 (27.29). The low P/E ratio could mean that investors are pessimistic about the outlook for the shares or simply that they're under-valued.

However, McDonald's's P/E ratio is best considered in relation to those of others within the restaurants industry or those of similar companies.

• Yum! Brands (YUM.US): 24.57
• Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG.US): 56.80
• The Wendy’s (WEN.US): 17.74

McDonald's's PEG ratio

McDonald's's "price/earnings-to-growth ratio" can be calculated by dividing its P/E ratio by its growth – to give 2.6709. A low ratio can be interpreted as meaning the shares offer better value, while a higher ratio can be interpreted as meaning the shares offer worse value.

The PEG ratio provides a broader view than just the P/E ratio, as it gives more insight into McDonald's's future profitability. By accounting for growth, it could also help you if you're comparing the share prices of multiple high-growth companies.

However, it's sensible to consider McDonald's's PEG ratio in relation to those of similar companies.

• Yum! Brands (YUM.US): 2.31
• Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG.US): 2.23
• The Wendy’s (WEN.US): 1.68

McDonald's's EBITDA

McDonald's's EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) is US$13.8 billion (£10.9 billion).

The EBITDA is a measure of a McDonald's's overall financial performance and is widely used to measure stock profitability.

To put McDonald's's EBITDA into context you can compare it against that of similar companies.

• Yum! Brands (YUM.US): USD$2.6 billion
• Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG.US): USD$2.2 billion
• The Wendy’s (WEN.US): USD$504.2 million

McDonald's share price volatility

Over the last 12 months, McDonald's's shares have ranged in value from as little as US$240.6579 up to US$315.9991. A popular way to gauge a stock's volatility is its "beta".

Beta measures a share's volatility in relation to the market. The market (NYSE average) beta is 1, while McDonald's's is 0.735. This would suggest that McDonald's's shares are less volatile than average (for this exchange).

To put McDonald's's beta into context you can compare it against those of similar companies.

• Yum! Brands (YUM.US): 1.095
• Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG.US): 1.266
• The Wendy’s (WEN.US): 0.783

McDonald's financials

Revenue TTM	US$25.9 billion
Operating margin TTM	46.97%
Gross profit TTM	US$13.2 billion
Return on assets TTM	13.63%
Return on equity TTM	0%
Profit margin	31.79%
Book value	-7.224
Market capitalisation more info button	US$208.5 billion
EBITDA more info button	US$13.8 billion

TTM: trailing 12 months

McDonald's share dividends

Dividend payout ratio: 57.22% of net profits

Recently McDonald's has paid out, on average, around 57.22% of net profits as dividends. That has enabled analysts to estimate a "forward annual dividend yield" of 2.39% of the current stock value. This means that over a year, based on recent payouts (which are sadly no guarantee of future payouts), McDonald's shareholders could enjoy a 2.39% return on their shares, in the form of dividend payments. In McDonald's's case, that would currently equate to about $6.68 per share.

McDonald's's payout ratio would broadly be considered high, and as such this stock could appeal to those looking to generate an income. Bear in mind however that companies should normally also look to re-invest a decent amount of net profits to ensure future growth.

McDonald's's most recent dividend payout was on 15 December 2024. The latest dividend was paid out to all shareholders who bought their shares by 1 December 2024 (the "ex-dividend date").

McDonald's's dividend payout ratio is perhaps best considered in relation to those of similar companies.

• Yum! Brands (YUM.US): 52.24%
• Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG.US): 0.00% (does not pay dividend)
• The Wendy’s (WEN.US): 104.17%

McDonald's's environmental, social and governance track record

Environmental, social and governance (known as ESG) criteria are a set of three factors used to measure the sustainability and social impact of companies like McDonald's.

When it comes to ESG scores, lower is better, and lower scores are generally associated with lower risk for would-be investors.

McDonald's's total ESG risk score

Total ESG risk: 22.47

Socially conscious investors use ESG scores to screen how an investment aligns with their worldview, and McDonald's's overall score of 22.47 (as at 12/31/2018) is pretty good – landing it in it in the 35th percentile of companies rated in the same sector.

ESG scores are increasingly used to estimate the level of risk a company like McDonald's is exposed to within the areas of "environmental" (carbon footprint, resource use etc.), "social" (health and safety, human rights etc.), and "governance" (anti-corruption, tax transparency etc.).

To gain some more context, you can compare McDonald's's total ESG risk score against those of similar companies.

• Yum! Brands (YUM.US): 16.14
• Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG.US): 28.83

McDonald's's environmental score

Environmental score: 2.17/100

McDonald's's environmental score of 2.17 puts it squarely in the 2nd percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that McDonald's is a leader in its sector terms of its environmental impact, and exposed to a lower level of risk.

McDonald's's social score

Social score: 14.15/100

McDonald's's social score of 14.15 puts it squarely in the 2nd percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that McDonald's is a leader in its sector when it comes to taking good care of its workforce and the communities it impacts.

McDonald's's governance score

Governance score: 5.15/100

McDonald's's governance score puts it squarely in the 2nd percentile of companies rated in the same sector. That could suggest that McDonald's is a leader in its sector when it comes to responsible management and strategy, and exposed to a lower level of risk.

McDonald's's controversy score

Controversy score: 3/5

ESG scores also evaluate any incidences of controversy that a company has been involved in. McDonald's scored a 3 out of 5 for controversy – a middle-of-the-table result reflecting that McDonald's hasn't always managed to keep its nose clean.

Wondering how that compares? Below are the controversy scores of similar companies.

• Yum! Brands (YUM.US): 3
• Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG.US): 3

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) summary

McDonald’s Corporation was last rated for ESG on: 2019-01-01.

Total ESG score	22.47
Total ESG percentile	35.48
Environmental score	2.17
Environmental score percentile	2
Social score	14.15
Social score percentile	2
Governance score	5.15
Governance score percentile	2
Level of controversy	3

McDonald's overview

McDonald's Corporation operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald's brand in the United States and internationally. It offers food and beverages, including hamburgers and cheeseburgers, various chicken sandwiches, fries, shakes, desserts, sundaes, cookies, pies, soft drinks, coffee, and other beverages; and full or limited breakfast, as well as sells various other products during limited-time promotions. The company owns and operates under various structures comprising conventional franchise, developmental license, or affiliate. McDonald's Corporation was founded in 1940 and is based in Chicago, Illinois.

Past developments

28 December 2022: The first mostly-machine run Mcdonald's has opened in Fort Worth in Texas. McDonalds will use touchscreens and conveyor belts in an attempt to automate customers service in their Texas McDonalds.

Frequently asked questions

• What percentage of McDonald's is owned by insiders or institutions?

  Currently 0.177% of McDonald's shares are held by insiders and 73.175% by institutions.

• When does the fiscal year end for McDonald's?

  McDonald's's fiscal year ends in December.

• Where is McDonald's based?

  McDonald's's address is: 110 North Carpenter Street, Chicago, IL, United States, 60607

• What is McDonald's's ISIN number?

  McDonald's's international securities identification number is: US5801351017

• What is McDonald's's CUSIP number?

  McDonald's's Committee on Uniform Securities Identification Procedures number is: 580135101