McDonald’s quarterly earnings beat expectations despite dip in U.S. restaurant traffic
The fast‑food chain posted higher net income and beat sales forecasts while U.S. same‑store sales slipped slightly.
McDonald’s announced mixed results for its fiscal third quarter on Wednesday, highlighting a modest drop in traffic to its U.S. restaurants but an overall earnings beat.
U.S. same‑store sales dip
The company recorded a 0.2% decline in sales at U.S. locations that have been open for at least 13 months. This was better than the 0.5% drop Wall Street had forecast, according to a StreetAccount analyst survey.
CEO Chris Kempczinski said the quarter showed “encouragement” as performance improved after the company intervened on value pricing. He had earlier noted in August that the U.S. business was “falling short on execution,” especially regarding value offerings.
Financial performance
Fiscal third‑quarter net income rose to $2.49 billion, or $3.51 per share, up from $2.28 billion, or $3.18 per share, a year earlier.
Excluding restructuring charges and other items, earnings were $3.57 per share.
Shares gained more than 2% in pre‑market trading following the release.
International sales drive growth
Overall same‑store sales increased 1.5%, helped by strong performance abroad.
The international developmental licensed markets segment, which includes Japan and China, posted same‑store sales growth of 4.2%.
The international operated division, covering markets such as Australia and Germany, saw a 1.4% rise, though this fell short of analysts’ 2.1% expectation.
France was identified as a weaker market within the operated division.
Despite the slight domestic slowdown, McDonald’s earnings beat and international momentum suggest the chain remains resilient as it works to improve U.S. execution.
