- SPOT has moved in the same direction as MCD's earnings reaction in 80% of 15 tracked reports, with a median same-day move of ±1.9% — ×1.3 its normal daily move.
- EarningsWatcher tracks 1 quality-gated sympathy peers for MCD: SPOT.
- When MCD's earnings reaction is positive, SPOT's median same-day move is +1.3%; when negative, -1.9%.
All measured sympathy peers for MCD
Every peer below passed the gates — enough events, direction consistency well above a coin flip, and a move meaningfully bigger than its normal day. Nobody else publishes this measurement; it exists because EarningsWatcher computes it from every MCD report, with the peer's own earnings days and heavy market days excluded.
| Peer | Same direction | Typical move | vs normal day | Sympathy score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SPOT | 80% of 15 | ±1.9% | ×1.3 | ▮▮ |
- the 0–100 sympathy score for each pair (direction consistency + amplification + correlation, discounted for small samples)
- each peer's live ATM straddle with an honest 1-day breakeven — the move it must beat by the reaction-day close
- historical beat rates from real option prices: how often past MCD reports beat that same hurdle
- direction splits, gap-vs-peak timing, and an event-by-event history for every pair
- the week's best pairs delivered as P0/P1/P2 sympathy picks
Why trade the peer instead of MCD itself?
Options on MCD are expensive into the print — the expected move is priced in, and implied volatility collapses the moment results land. SPOT has no event that day: its options are priced for a normal session, and measured across our pairs the median change in peer IV through a reporter's print is roughly zero. The sympathy trade turns MCD's report into a position with a normal-day hurdle instead of an event-premium hurdle. New to the concept? Read what a sympathy play is, then see this week's live boardor the MCD implied-move page.
Frequently asked questions
Which stocks move when MCD reports earnings?
Measured over up to ten years of MCD's earnings days, the strongest sympathy peer is SPOT: same direction as MCD's reaction in 80% of 15 tracked reports, median same-day move ±1.9%.
Are stocks like MCD worth watching on its earnings day?
That is exactly what a sympathy play is: MCD's report reprices companies with the same customers and economics, so 'stocks like MCD' often move the same day — without an earnings event of their own. The size is usually smaller than MCD's own move (SPOT: ±1.9% vs a normal day ×1.3), but the peer's options carry no event premium, so there is no IV crush to pay.
Is SPOT correlated with MCD?
On MCD's earnings days specifically, yes, historically: 80% same-direction over 15 events after excluding SPOT's own earnings window and heavy market days. General day-to-day correlation is a different (weaker) question — the earnings-day link is the tradeable one.
What is a sympathy stock?
A sympathy stock moves on another company's news rather than its own — here, SPOT reacting to MCD's earnings. EarningsWatcher measures these relationships event by event and gates them for sample size, direction consistency and amplification; see the full guide to sympathy plays.