McDonaldsMCDWEAK BUYSep 14, 2015Stock price when the opinion was issued
As of Jun 05, 2026. Market Open.
Half its business is NA, half international. Not a huge amount of growth, perhaps 5-6%. EPS growth of 7-8%. Opens a few new stores a year. More of a landlord, with over 90% franchised. Very high ROIC.
Only 20x PE today, down from historically high 20s. In his world, it's a staple not discretionary :) Yield is 2.65%.
Was downgraded last Friday and today over fears they won't meet expectations this quarter, including disappointment over MCD's new chicken strips dish, that it won't turn things around. Rather, customer prefer heavily breaded chicken and the find these strips ugly. However, history says it has never paid to downgrade MCD. It's the king, offering good value and is highly well-run. The CEO will figure it out.
The story is improving. Their same store sales are actually improving except in the US. They are going to close more restaurants in the US than they are going to open. It has held up fairly strongly in the down turn. A good dividend yield and they buy back a lot of stock. They have real estate holdings also. He prefers SBUX-Q.