Both stocks run through our valuation models. Here is how McDonald’s (MCD) and Starbucks (SBUX) compare, as of Aug 14, 2026.
As of Aug 14, 2026, Fair Value Calculator sees McDonald’s as the less overvalued of the two: McDonald’s trades at $272 versus a fair value of $149 (-45%), while Starbucks trades at $109 versus $56.43 (-48%).
McDonald’s
MCD · USD · Consumer Discretionary
-45%
upside to fair value
overvalued
Price$272
Fair Value$149
Quality68/100
Starbucks
SBUX · USD · Consumer Discretionary
-48%
upside to fair value
overvalued
Price$109
Fair Value$56.43
Quality57/100
Head-to-head numbers
Green value = the better side for that row (for valuation multiples: lower = cheaper).
McDonald’sStarbucks
Valuation
22.6×P/E (TTM)80.5×
7.11×P/S (TTM)3.13×
15.8×EV/EBITDA24.4×
2.56×PEG1.29×
2.6%Dividend yield2.3%
$7.26Dividend per share$2.47
Profitability
32%Net margin4%
44%Operating margin8%
14%Return on assets7%
Growth
9%Revenue growth (YoY)9%
5.1%Avg. growth/yr (3Y)4.9%
7.0%Avg. growth/yr (5Y)9.6%
Balance & size
$195BMarket cap$120B
healthyGrowth qualityhealthy
McDonald’s leads: 8 to 3 metric wins.
Dash = not meaningfully computable, for example with negative equity.
Quality in detail
The quality score, broken down into the same factor families as on the stock page, 0 to 100 per family.
McDonald’sof which business quality 65 · market factors 47Starbucksof which business quality 56 · market factors 63
ProfitabilityMargins and returns on capital today
64
54
Quality GrowthAre margins and returns improving?
46
21
CashflowEarnings quality: real cash, not paper profit
InvestmentDisciplined investing over empire-building
57
77
Low VolatilityCalm price path (market factor)
97
68
MomentumPrice trend over the last 3–12 months (market factor)
30
52
52W MomentumDistance to the 52-week high (market factor)
18
76
Net IssuanceBuybacks instead of dilution
91
83
What the models say
The median fair value (base case) per model family, each in the currency of its trading venue. Green = above the current price, red = below.
McDonald’s
DCF Models$117
Earnings-Based$102
Dividend Discount$98.39
Multiples$225
Growth DCF$58.72
Economic Profit$113
Growth Earnings$209
21 of 21 models see the stock below the current price.
Starbucks
DCF Models$37.81
Earnings-Based$19.71
Dividend Discount$42.79
Multiples$35.83
Growth DCF$38.33
Economic Profit$15.59
Growth Earnings$31.99
23 of 23 models see the stock below the current price.
Scenario ranges
From our cautious bear case to the optimistic bull case. The white tick is the current price: left of fair value means room to run.
McDonald’s
Bear $98.03Fair Value $149Bull $233
$272 = current price (white tick)
Starbucks
Bear $34.48Fair Value $56.43Bull $70.55
$109 = current price (white tick)
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Ranked within their sector
Where each stock sits within its sector peer group. Band = middle 50% of peers, tick = median, dot = this stock.
McDonald’s · Consumer Discretionary
Quality score68 · Top 25%
Fair value upside-45% · below median
Starbucks · Consumer Discretionary
Quality score57 · above median
Fair value upside-48% · below median
Bottom line
As of Aug 14, 2026, Fair Value Calculator sees McDonald’s as the less overvalued of the two: McDonald’s trades at $272 versus a fair value of $149 (-45%), while Starbucks trades at $109 versus $56.43 (-48%).
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A model-based valuation snapshot from 21 models. Values change with price and fundamentals; the date shown above applies.
