For informational purposes only — not investment advice

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MCD

LONGINSIDER SELLCONGRESS BUYCONGRESS SELL

MCDONALDS CORP

Research: Finviz ↗·Perplexity ↗

🗄 Viewing archived Q1 2026 data — frozen, no longer refreshed.

Funds
3
Score
3.58
vs SPY
-31.3%
Stock return (since Q-end)
-11.6%
SPY return (since Q-end)
+19.7%
Current price
$272.83
Days to cover (short int.)
2.8d↑+6.9%
as of 2026-07-31

News Summary

Negative

McDonald's delivered mixed results with Q1 earnings beats but Q2 revealed troubling U.S. execution issues, with same-store sales of just 0.8% and CEO acknowledging operational failures. Management transitions, guidance delays to 50K restaurants (end-2028 vs end-2027), and analyst price target cuts (~4.6%) signal investor concern despite loyalty program strength and overall profitability.

Red flags

  • U.S. comparable sales deteriorated to 0.8% in Q2 2026 with negative comps reported in July, well below company expectations
  • CEO acknowledged execution failures: 'We simply didn't execute at the level we needed to in the second quarter'
  • New McValue platform and World Cup promotions significantly underperformed
  • 50,000 restaurant target delayed by ~12 months (end-2028 vs prior end-2027 guidance) due to consumer environment and cost inflation
  • Joseph Erlinger, President of McDonald's USA for 6+ years, stepped down amid operational underperformance
  • Analyst price targets cut by ~4.6% over 3 months; Evercore ISI and JPMorgan both reduced targets
  • SG&A expenses surged 17% year-over-year, limiting operating leverage despite revenue growth
  • Foreign exchange tailwind guidance reduced from $0.20-$0.30 to $0.15 per share

Funds Buying (3)

FundManagerShares Held∆ SharesPosition Value% of FundQoQStatus
Viking GlobalAndreas Halvorsen3.6M+6K$1.1B3.2%+0%Existing
Maverick CapitalLee Ainslie294K+282K$91M1.1%>+999%Existing
Soros Fund ManagementSoros Family Office124K+124K$38M0.5%NEW

Shares Held and Position Value reflect total quarter-end holdings. ∆ Shares is the change from the prior quarter. % of Fund is the position's share of the fund's reported equity portfolio — it drives the size weighting in the conviction score.

Portfolio Context

Where MCD ranks in each buying fund's book, and the positions immediately around it. What a holding sits next to often says more about the thesis than the position size does.

Viking Global

position #7 of this fund's book

  1. 4DISNEY WALT CO$1,282M
  2. 5FORTIVE CORP$1,243M
  3. 6AIR PRODUCTS AND CHEMICALS I$1,192M
  4. 7MCDONALDS CORP$1,127M
  5. 8SHERWIN WILLIAMS CO$998M
  6. 9TESLA INC$927M
  7. 10APPLE INC$912M
Maverick Capital

position #33 of this fund's book

  1. 30ASTERA LABS INC$105M
  2. 31COCA COLA CO$98M
  3. 32PHILIP MORRIS INTL INC$94M
  4. 33MCDONALDS CORP$91M
  5. 34MOLINA HEALTHCARE INC$86M
  6. 35VAXCYTE INC$80M
  7. 36NOVO-NORDISK A S$76M

Values are quarter-end position sizes. Shown only for funds where MCD ranks inside their 40 largest equity positions — below that, neighbouring names carry no signal. Adjacency is an inference about a fund's reasoning, not a disclosure of it.

Insider Activity

NameTitleTypeSharesPriceValueFiledSrc
Erlinger Joseph M.President, McDonald's USASELL5K$284.32$1.49M2026-06-10
Ralls-Morrison DesireeEVP, Chief Legal OfficerSELL3K$278.36$0.77M2026-05-28
Erlinger Joseph M.President, McDonald's USASELL333$280.11$0.09M2026-05-26
Erlinger Joseph M.President, McDonald's USASELL333$302.72$0.10M2026-04-23
Erlinger Joseph M.President, McDonald's USASELL3K$307.00$0.81M2026-04-10

Beneficial Ownership (13D/13G)

FilerFormShares% of ClassFiledSrc
STATE STREET CORPORATIONSC 13G36.0M5.1%2026-02-09

SC 13D = active intent to influence control (10-day filing deadline after crossing 5%). SC 13G = passive accumulation, no intent to influence control.

Congressional Trading

MemberChamberStateTypeAmount RangeTransaction DateFiledSrc
Alan ArmstrongsenateBUY$1,001 - $15,0002026-03-272026-07-21
Thomas H TubervillesenateSELL$15,001 - $50,0002024-10-292026-08-05
Thomas H TubervillesenateSELL$15,001 - $50,0002024-10-292026-08-05

Periodic Transaction Reports filed under the STOCK Act. Amounts are disclosed as ranges, not exact dollar figures.