Restaurant stocks: 4 companies analyzed

The 4 restaurants companies Fintols covers, such as McDonald's, Starbucks and Chipotle: P/E, growth, margin and dividend with dated figures.

Publicly traded restaurant chains range from fast food to coffee shops and casual or fine dining. There are two main models. In the company-operated model, the chain runs the locations and keeps all the sales, but also pays the rent, wages and food bills. In the franchise model, independent operators run the restaurants and the chain collects royalties on their sales and sometimes rent on the property. It brings in less revenue, but with much higher margins and far less capital. Some chains mix both models depending on the country.

The key metric is same-store sales, which shows whether existing locations are selling more thanks to extra traffic or just higher menu prices. Check what share of units is franchised, since that completely changes the margin and capital profile, and look at restaurant-level margin for company-run chains. The pace of new openings, and how profitable they are, hints at how much room is left to grow. Many franchisors borrow to buy back stock, so keep an eye on debt as well.

Common risks include rising wages and food costs, diners cutting back when the economy tightens, shifting tastes toward healthier options, dependence on delivery apps and food safety scares. If you’re just starting, remember that a chain opening locations at breakneck speed can hide the fact that older restaurants are selling less. Look at same-store sales before you get excited about total revenue growth. Also compare margin trends with labor and food costs.

With data as of November 4, 2026, of the 4 restaurants companies Fintols covers, the largest by market value is McDonald's ($198.3 billion), the fastest-growing in its latest quarter is Yum! Brands (+12.2% in sales) and the highest dividend yield belongs to McDonald's (2.93%). The typical company in the group trades on a P/E of 27.8x and keeps a net margin of 18.1% (medians). Figures come from Yahoo Finance, the same source the Fintols analysis uses; N/A means the figure is not available.

Restaurant companies on Fintols

Company	Market cap	P/E	Revenue growth	Net margin	Dividend yield
McDonald's (MCD)	$198.3 billion	22.8x	+3.7%	31.7%	2.93%
Starbucks (SBUX)	$125.1 billion	49.6x	-4.5%	6.7%	2.41%
Yum! Brands (YUM)	$44.7 billion	13.4x	+12.2%	25.4%	1.90%
Chipotle (CMG)	$44.5 billion	32.9x	+9.6%	10.8%	0.00%

Restaurant comparisons

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