On October 23, 2024, an image of a McDonald’s restaurant in Omaha, Nebraska, captured the attention of many, courtesy of Mario Tama and Getty Images. Fast forward to today, McDonald’s is gearing up to release its fourth-quarter earnings before the markets open on Monday, with much anticipation from Wall Street. Analysts surveyed by LSEG predict earnings per share to be around $2.83 and revenue to hit approximately $6.44 billion.
This quarter has been a rollercoaster for the fast-food icon. Initially, McDonald’s saw a revival in sales after experiencing a summer lull. This uptick was largely driven by the popularity of its value meals and the introduction of the Chicken Big Mac as a permanent menu item in early October. However, the tide turned a few weeks into the quarter when the CDC identified a fatal E. coli outbreak linked to the Quarter Pounder burgers. The onions used in these burgers were identified as the potential source, prompting McDonald’s to immediately switch suppliers. Fortunately, by the start of December, the CDC declared the outbreak had ended.
Despite resolving the issue, the aftermath was palpable. Traffic plunged in McDonald’s U.S. locations, significantly so in the impacted states, although there has been a gradual recovery in customer visits since then. Still, analysts are bracing for a 0.6% dip in U.S. same-store sales, based on predictions from StreetAccount.
Globally, McDonald’s same-store sales are expected to have dropped by 1%, which would mark the third consecutive quarter of such declines for the chain. Over the past year, McDonald’s stock has seen a modest increase of just 2%, bringing its market capitalization to about $211 billion.
