Head to head · SEC data as of July 15, 2026
McDonald's
80
Quality score · out of 100
Yum! Brands
80
Quality score · out of 100
On paper this one is nearly a draw: McDonald's scores 80 and Yum! Brands scores 80 out of 100 in our fundamental quality model. McDonald's wins on net margin (31.6% vs 20.5%) and cash generation (FCF) (25.6% vs 19.4%). Yum! Brands answers with less debt (1.13× vs 3.01×).
| Metric | McDonald's | Yum! Brands |
|---|---|---|
| Quality score (0-100) | 80 | 80 |
| Net margin | 31.6% | 20.5% |
| Gross margin | — | — |
| ROE | — | — |
| Net debt/EBITDA | 3.01× | 1.13× |
| FCF margin | 25.6% | 19.4% |
| Revenue growth (annualized) | 7% | 8.1% |
| Earnings growth (annualized) | 13.3% | 13.3% |
TTM metrics with official SEC data, refreshed daily. Bold green marks the winner of each metric. A dash means the metric doesn't apply or isn't reliable.
McDonald's. McDonald's is the world's largest fast-food chain. It largely operates as a real-estate franchise business: most of its restaurants are run by franchisees who pay it rent and royalties, giving it very stable income.
Yum! Brands. Yum! Brands owns KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut: over 55,000 restaurants worldwide, nearly all franchised. It doesn't sell chicken: it collects royalties on franchisees' sales — a capital-light, high-margin model.
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What this comparison doesn't tell you
The score measures business quality, not whether the stock is cheap or expensive: the better company can be the worse investment if you overpay. For the valuation verdict, enter each one's current price in the analyzer:
Who has the stronger fundamentals today, McDonald's or Yum! Brands?
They're practically tied: McDonald's and Yum! Brands score 80 and 80 out of 100 in the StockSemáforo model (profitability, growth and financial strength, built on official SEC data). The score is recomputed nightly with the latest filings.
Does that make McDonald's the better investment?
No. The score measures business quality, not valuation: an excellent company can trade at an excessive price and be a poor investment at that price. To find out whether it's cheap or expensive, enter its current quote in the StockSemáforo analyzer.
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