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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.
How to buy shares in McDonald's
- Compare share trading platforms. To buy shares in a company listed in the US from Australia you'll need to find a trading platform that offers access to US stock markets. Look for a platform with low brokerage and foreign exchange fees.
- Open and fund your brokerage account. Complete an application with your personal and financial details, which will typically include your ID and tax file number. Fund your account with a bank transfer, credit card or debit card.
- Search for McDonald's. Find the share by name or ticker symbol: MCD. Research its history to confirm it's a solid investment that matches your financial goals.
- Purchase now or later. Buy today with a market order or use a limit order to delay your purchase until McDonald's reaches your desired price. To spread out your risk, look into dollar-cost averaging, which smooths out buying using consistent intervals and amounts.
- Decide on how many to buy. At last close price of US$290.73, weigh your budget against a diversified portfolio that can minimise risk through the market's ups and downs. You may be able to buy a fractional share of McDonald's, depending on your broker.
- Check in on your investment. Congratulations, you own a part of McDonald's. Optimise your portfolio by tracking how your stock — and even the business — performs with an eye on the long term. You may be eligible for dividends and shareholder voting rights.
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
Information last updated 2024-11-14.
| 52-week range | US$242.1056 - US$317.9 |
|---|---|
| 50-day moving average | US$299.9962 |
| 200-day moving average | US$279.3796 |
| Target price | US$321.5066 |
| PE ratio | 26.2125 |
| Dividend yield | US$6.68 (2.38%) |
| Earnings per share (TTM) | US$11.39 |
Use the fields above to explore the returns from a historical investment. Please refer to the charts further up this page to see performance over 5 years, or other periods. Past performance doesn't indicate future results. Capital is at risk.
McDonald's price performance over time
Historical closes compared with the last close of $290.73
| 1 week (2024-11-13) | -2.23% |
|---|---|
| 1 month (2024-10-21) | -7.67% |
| 3 months (2024-08-20) | 1.79% |
| 6 months (2024-05-20) | 8.53% |
| 1 year (2023-11-20) | 4.19% |
|---|---|
| 2 years (2022-11-18) | 6.35% |
| 3 years (2021-11-19) | 15.39% |
| 5 years (2019-11-20) | 49.76% |
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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.
McDonald's share price volatility
Over the last 12 months, McDonald's's shares have ranged in value from as little as US$242.1056 up to US$317.9. 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 | US$214 billion |
| EBITDA | 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 2.38% 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 2.38% 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): 51.07%
- 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.
McDonald's in the news
The McDonald's Quarter Pounder E. coli outbreak has sparked its first lawsuit
McDonald’s Quarter Pounders Linked to Deadly E. Coli Outbreak
McDonald's agreed to Trump event but says it isn't endorsing a presidential candidate
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