HSY vs. MCD

Last updated Apr 1, 2026

Compare and contrast key facts about The Hershey Company (HSY) and McDonald's Corporation (MCD).

Performance

HSY vs. MCD - Performance Comparison

The chart below illustrates the hypothetical performance of a $10,000 investment in The Hershey Company (HSY) and McDonald's Corporation (MCD). The values are adjusted to include any dividend payments, if applicable.

HSY vs. MCD - Yearly Performance Comparison

	2026 (YTD)	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017
HSY The Hershey Company	14.99%	10.98%	-6.51%	-17.88%	21.86%	29.58%	5.90%	40.20%	-2.92%	12.33%
MCD McDonald's Corporation	2.26%	7.89%	0.14%	15.06%	0.51%	27.79%	11.30%	13.97%	5.78%	45.05%

Fundamentals

Market Cap HSY : $42.26B MCD : $221.97B
EPS HSY : $4.34 MCD : $11.96
PE Ratio HSY : 47.85 MCD : 25.98
PS Ratio HSY : 3.61 MCD : 8.28
Total Revenue (TTM) HSY : $11.69B MCD : $26.89B
Gross Profit (TTM) HSY : $3.89B MCD : $15.31B
EBITDA (TTM) HSY : $1.82B MCD : $14.22B

Returns By Period

In the year-to-date period, HSY achieves a 14.99% return, which is significantly higher than MCD's 2.26% return. Over the past 10 years, HSY has underperformed MCD with an annualized return of 10.91%, while MCD has yielded a comparatively higher 12.03% annualized return.

HSY

• 1D: -2.65%
• 1M: -12.02%
• YTD: 14.99%
• 6M: 12.73%
• 1Y: 25.29%
• 3Y*: -3.88%
• 5Y*: 8.11%
• 10Y*: 10.91%

MCD

• 1D: 0.73%
• 1M: -8.37%
• YTD: 2.26%
• 6M: 3.46%
• 1Y: 1.80%
• 3Y*: 6.00%
• 5Y*: 9.10%
• 10Y*: 12.03%

*Multi-year figures are annualized to reflect compound growth (CAGR)

Return for Risk

HSY vs. MCD — Risk / Return Rank

Compare risk-adjusted metric ranks to identify better-performing investments over the past 12 months.

HSY

HSY Risk / Return Rank: 72
HSY Sharpe Ratio Rank: 74
HSY Sortino Ratio Rank: 70
HSY Omega Ratio Rank: 64
HSY Calmar Ratio Rank: 73
HSY Martin Ratio Rank: 77

MCD

MCD Risk / Return Rank: 44
MCD Sharpe Ratio Rank: 46
MCD Sortino Ratio Rank: 37
MCD Omega Ratio Rank: 37
MCD Calmar Ratio Rank: 51
MCD Martin Ratio Rank: 52

The rank (0–100) shows how this investment's returns compare to the risk taken. Higher = better. Based on the past 12 months of data, combining Sharpe, Sortino, and other metrics used by quantitative funds and institutional investors.

HSY vs. MCD - Risk-Adjusted Trends Comparison

This table presents a comparison of risk-adjusted performance metrics for The Hershey Company (HSY) and McDonald's Corporation (MCD). Risk-adjusted metrics are performance indicators that assess an investment's returns in relation to its risk, enabling a more accurate comparison of different investment options.

	HSY	MCD	Difference
Sharpe ratio Return per unit of total volatility	0.94	0.10	+0.83
Sortino ratio Return per unit of downside risk	1.52	0.27	+1.25
Omega ratio Gain probability vs. loss probability	1.18	1.03	+0.14
Calmar ratio Return relative to maximum drawdown	1.54	0.33	+1.20
Martin ratio Return relative to average drawdown	4.84	0.79	+4.06
Data is calculated on a 1-year rolling basis and updated daily. The trend shows the change in the indicator over the past month.

HSY vs. MCD - Sharpe Ratio Comparison

The current HSY Sharpe Ratio is 0.94, which is higher than the MCD Sharpe Ratio of 0.10. The chart below compares the historical Sharpe Ratios of HSY and MCD, offering insights into how both investments have performed under varying market conditions. These values are calculated using daily returns over the previous 12 months.

Sharpe Ratios by Period

	HSY	MCD	Difference
Sharpe Ratio (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	0.94	0.10	+0.83
Sharpe Ratio (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period	0.37	0.54	-0.17
Sharpe Ratio (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period	0.47	0.59	-0.12
Sharpe Ratio (All Time) Calculated using the full available price history	0.51	0.54	-0.03

Correlation

The correlation between HSY and MCD is 0.31, which is considered to be low. This implies their price changes are not closely related. A low correlation is generally favorable for portfolio diversification, as it helps to reduce overall risk by spreading it across multiple assets with different performance patterns.

Dividends

HSY vs. MCD - Dividend Comparison

HSY's dividend yield for the trailing twelve months is around 2.68%, more than MCD's 2.34% yield.

	TTM	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017	2016	2015
HSY The Hershey Company	2.68%	3.01%	3.24%	2.39%	1.67%	1.76%	2.07%	2.03%	2.57%	2.24%	2.32%	2.50%
MCD McDonald's Corporation	2.34%	2.35%	2.34%	2.10%	2.15%	1.96%	2.35%	2.39%	2.36%	2.23%	2.97%	2.91%

Drawdowns

HSY vs. MCD - Drawdown Comparison

The maximum HSY drawdown since its inception was -49.15%, smaller than the maximum MCD drawdown of -73.20%. Use the drawdown chart below to compare losses from any high point for HSY and MCD.

Drawdown Indicators

	HSY	MCD	Difference
Max Drawdown Largest peak-to-trough decline	-49.15%	-73.20%	+24.05%
Max Drawdown (1Y) Largest decline over 1 year	-17.00%	-10.60%	-6.40%
Max Drawdown (5Y) Largest decline over 5 years	-45.25%	-17.23%	-28.02%
Max Drawdown (10Y) Largest decline over 10 years	-45.25%	-36.90%	-8.35%
Current Drawdown Current decline from peak	-18.25%	-8.37%	-9.88%
Average Drawdown Average peak-to-trough decline	-13.05%	-14.90%	+1.85%
Ulcer Index Depth and duration of drawdowns from previous peaks	5.40%	4.52%	+0.88%

Volatility

HSY vs. MCD - Volatility Comparison

The Hershey Company (HSY) has a higher volatility of 6.54% compared to McDonald's Corporation (MCD) at 4.79%. This indicates that HSY's price experiences larger fluctuations and is considered to be riskier than MCD based on this measure. The chart below showcases a comparison of their rolling one-month volatility.

Volatility by Period

	HSY	MCD	Difference
Volatility (1M) Calculated over the trailing 1-month period	6.54%	4.79%	+1.75%
Volatility (6M) Calculated over the trailing 6-month period	18.84%	11.76%	+7.08%
Volatility (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	27.07%	17.27%	+9.80%
Volatility (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period, annualized	22.20%	17.06%	+5.14%
Volatility (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period, annualized	23.22%	20.32%	+2.90%

Financials

HSY vs. MCD - Profitability Comparison

The chart below illustrates the profitability comparison between The Hershey Company and McDonald's Corporation over time, highlighting three key metrics: Gross Profit Margin, Operating Margin, and Net Profit Margin.

HSY - Gross Margin

Gross margin is calculated as gross profit divided by revenue. For the three months ending on Apr 2026, The Hershey Company reported a gross profit of 1.14B and revenue of 3.09B. Therefore, the gross margin over that period was 37.0%.

MCD - Gross Margin

Gross margin is calculated as gross profit divided by revenue. For the three months ending on Apr 2026, McDonald's Corporation reported a gross profit of 3.91B and revenue of 7.01B. Therefore, the gross margin over that period was 55.8%.

HSY - Operating Margin

Operating margin is calculated as operating income divided by revenue. For the three months ending on Apr 2026, The Hershey Company reported an operating income of 444.91M and revenue of 3.09B, resulting in an operating margin of 14.4%.

MCD - Operating Margin

Operating margin is calculated as operating income divided by revenue. For the three months ending on Apr 2026, McDonald's Corporation reported an operating income of 3.16B and revenue of 7.01B, resulting in an operating margin of 45.1%.

HSY - Net Margin

Net margin is calculated as net income divided by revenue. For the three months ending on Apr 2026, The Hershey Company reported a net income of 320.02M and revenue of 3.09B, resulting in a net margin of 10.4%.

MCD - Net Margin

Net margin is calculated as net income divided by revenue. For the three months ending on Apr 2026, McDonald's Corporation reported a net income of 2.16B and revenue of 7.01B, resulting in a net margin of 30.9%.