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Tag: McDonald's Corp.

  • McDonald’s misses revenue target as it cites impact from Middle East war

    McDonald’s misses revenue target as it cites impact from Middle East war


    McDonald’s Corp.’s stock fell 1.3% in premarket trading on Monday after the fast-food giant missed Wall Street analysts’ estimates for revenue and same-store sales, while citing an impact from war in the Middle East.

    The global fast-food giant said it expects “macro challenges” to persist in 2024.

    McDonald’s
    MCD,
    -0.35%
    said its fourth-quarter net income rose by 7% to $2.04 billion, or $2.80 a share, from $1.9 billion, or $2.59 a share, in the year-ago quarter.

    McDonald’s said the latest quarter’s results included 15 cents a share in one-time charges.

    Breaking those charges out, McDonald’s would have earned $1.95 a share. Analysts expected McDonalds to earn $1.83 a share, according to FactSet data.

    Revenue rose 8% to $6.41 billion, short of the FactSet consensus estimate of $6.45 billion.

    Fourth-quarter global comparable-store sales increased by 3.4%, including a 4.3% rise in the U.S.. Analysts expected same-store sales growth of 4.7%.

    McDonald’s said its comparable sales fell in the Middle East as a reflection of war in the region since Oct. 7.

    All other same-stores sales rose in international developmental licensed markets.

    Total international developmental licensed markets same-store sales rose by 0.7%, well below the result in the previous quarter, which saw a 10.5% increase.

    Looking back at the balance of 2023, McDonald’s said its net income rose by 37% to $8.47 billion.

    Revenue jumped by 10% in 2023 to $25.49 billion.

    Free cash flow for 2023 increased to $7.25 billion from $5.49 billion.

    Before Monday’s moves, McDonald’s stock was up by 10.9% in the past year.



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  • Why McDonald’s is bringing back its McRib for the umpteenth time

    Why McDonald’s is bringing back its McRib for the umpteenth time

    Call it the long goodbye, fast food-style.

    McDonald’s
    MCD,
    +0.27%
    is planning to bring back its beloved McRib sandwich, just one year after giving the porky treat a “farewell tour.” The menu item is set to return next month, according to the company.

    “While it won’t be available nationwide, some lucky fans may find their favorite elusive saucy sandwich at their local McDonald’s restaurants this November,” McDonald’s said in a statement to MarketWatch on Wednesday.

    Not that the news should come as a complete surprise. McDonald’s has always employed a scarcity tactic in marketing the McRib. That is, the key to the sandwich’s appeal has been that it’s never around for long, leaving fans (including Homer Simpson) to devour it while they can.

    As Restaurant Business, a trade publication, observed last year: “If consumers think there is a shortage of a product, or that it won’t be around for long, they will rush out to get it. Think of the Great Toilet Paper Shortage in 2020 and how many people rushed out to get some the moment they thought they might run out.”

    The publication quoted McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski about this approach, particularly in relation to the “farewell tour”: “The McRib is the GOAT of sandwiches on our menu. And so like the GOATs Michael Jordan, Tom Brady, and others, you’re never sure if they’re fully retired or not.”

    By all accounts, the strategy has worked: A Wall Street Journal story once noted that McDonald’s sold more than 60 million of the sandwiches over a three-year period — in spite of the fact (or maybe because of the fact) it’s available in such limited fashion.

    Further proof of the McRib’s success: It has spawned some competition. In 2021, Arby’s released a Country Style Pork Rib sandwich as a limited-time fall offering — and took cheeky aim at McDonald’s in its marketing, referring to the McRib as a “rib-shaped sandwich” (there’s some truth to that — the McRib features a boneless pork patty with no actual ribs).

    Naturally, the McRib’s return has sparked plenty of reaction on social media. One commenter on X (formerly Twitter) referred to the fact the sandwich seemingly has nine lives. Another said that McDonald’s retracting of its “farewell tour” announcement has left them having “trust issues.”

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  • Heineken is the latest Western corporate giant to exit Russia

    Heineken is the latest Western corporate giant to exit Russia

    Beer giant Heineken N.V. is the latest Western company to exit Russia, announcing Friday the sale of its Russian operations to Arnest Group for one euro.

    Under the terms of the deal, all of Heineken’s
    HEIA,
    +0.77%
    remaining assets, including seven breweries in Russia, will transfer to the new owners, the beer giant said in a statement. The Russian Arnest Group has also taken over responsibility for Heineken’s 1,800 employees in Russia.

    Heineken began the process of exiting Russia in March 2022, following that country’s invasion of Ukraine. The company said it expects to incur a total cumulative loss of €300 million ($324.1 million) as a result of its exit.

    “We have now completed our exit from Russia. Recent developments demonstrate the significant challenges faced by large manufacturing companies in exiting Russia,” Heineken CEO Dolf van den Brink said in a statement. “While it took much longer than we had hoped, this transaction secures the livelihoods of our employees and allows us to exit the country in a responsible manner.”

    Related: Unilever CEO vows to look at Russian operations with ‘fresh eyes’ as pressure to exit the country mounts

    A number of major Western corporations, including U.S. giants Apple Inc.
    AAPL,
    +1.26%    ,
     Alphabet Inc. 
    GOOGL,
    +0.08%

    GOOG,
    +0.21%    ,
     Amazon.com Inc.
    AMZN,
    +1.08%    ,
     International Business Machines  Corp. 
    IBM,
    +1.25%
    and McDonald’s Corp. 
    MCD,
    +0.79%    ,
    have left Russia in response to Moscow’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

    Earlier this week, DP Eurasia, the master franchiser of the Domino’s Pizza Inc.
    DPZ,
    +0.49%
    brand in Turkey, Russia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, also announced its exit from Russia.

    But Heineken is “no hero,” according to Mark Dixon, the founder of the Moral Rating Agency, an organization set up after the invasion of Ukraine to examine whether companies were carrying out their promises of exiting Russia. “It failed to leave Russia for a year and a half,” he told MarketWatch via email. “The explanation that it took longer than expected doesn’t hold water, because of course it’s difficult to find a buyer if you remain so long a pariah state.”

    The Ukraine Solidarity Project said that Heineken’s move should increase the pressure on companies that remain in Russia, such as consumer-goods giant Unilever PLC
    ULVR,
    +0.44%    .
    “The point here is that major companies, like @Heineken, are and have taken loses of hundreds of millions and billions in leaving the Russian market. It is possible,” the Ukraine Solidarity Project tweeted Friday. “We’re sure @Unilever can do it, too.”

    Related: WeWork, Carl’s Jr., Unilever and Shell among companies slammed by Yale over operations in Russia

    The Ukraine Solidarity Project recently launched a high-profile campaign urging Unilever to get out of Russia, using images of Ukrainian veterans injured in the war with Russia. Last month, activists from the Ukraine Solidarity Project held up a giant poster featuring the veterans outside Unilever’s London headquarters.

    The Moral Rating Agency has also reiterated its calls for Unilever to end its Russian operations. 

    “We have always said we would keep our position in Russia under close review,” a Unilever spokesperson told MarketWatch earlier this month. The spokesperson also directed MarketWatch to a statement on the war in Ukraine that the company released in February 2023.

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  • SEC charges ex–McDonald’s CEO Easterbrook for making false statements relating to his 2019 ouster

    SEC charges ex–McDonald’s CEO Easterbrook for making false statements relating to his 2019 ouster

    The Securities and Exchange Commission said Monday it has filed charges against Stephen J. Easterbrook, former chief executive of McDonald’s Corp., for making “false and misleading” statements to investors about the circumstances that led to his ouster in November 2019.

    The agency has also filed charges against McDonald’s for “shortcomings” in its public disclosures relating to Easterbrook’s severance agreement.

    McDonald’s
    MCD,
    -0.55%
    fired Easterbrook for exercising poor judgment and violating company policy by engaging in an inappropriate personal relationship with a McDonald’s employee. However, the separation agreement struck with the executive concluded that his termination was without cause, allowing him to retain substantial equity compensation that would have been forfeited in other circumstances.

    “In making this conclusion, McDonald’s exercised discretion that was not disclosed to investors,” the SEC said in a statement.

    In July 2020, McDonald’s discovered in an internal probe that Easterbrook had engaged in other, undisclosed relationships with employees. Those findings were not disclosed prior to Easterbrook’s termination, in the knowledge that they would influence the board’s decision making, according to the SEC.

    “When corporate officers corrupt internal processes to manage their personal reputations or line their own pockets, they breach their fundamental duties to shareholders, who are entitled to transparency and fair dealing from executives,” said Gurbir S. Grewal, the SEC’s director of the division of enforcement. 

    The SEC is charging Easterbrook with violating anti-fraud provisions of the SEC Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Easterbrook has consented to a cease-and-desist order and five-year officer and director bar and a $400,000 civil penalty, without admitting to or denying the charges.

    McDonald’s is charged with violating section 14(a) of the Exchange Act and Exchange Act Rule 14a-3. The fast-food giant has consented to a cease-and-desist order, without admitting to or denying SEC findings. The SEC has opted not to fine the company, as it cooperated with the agency and clawed back compensation after its probe.

    The stock was slightly lower Monday in early trades.

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  • FIFA rebuffed Zelensky’s offer to share message of peace at World Cup final, report says

    FIFA rebuffed Zelensky’s offer to share message of peace at World Cup final, report says

    World soccer’s governing body FIFA rebuffed an offer from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to share a message of world peace at the World Cup final, according to a CNN report.

    Citing an unnamed source, CNN reported that Zelensky’s office offered an appearance via video link prior to kickoff at Sunday’s final. Defending World Cup champion France takes on Argentina in the match at Lusail Stadium, several miles north of the Qatari capital Doha.

    The source told CNN that Zelensky’s office was surprised by the negative response. It’s unclear if the message was to be delivered live, or taped, the report said. “We thought FIFA wanted to use its platform for the greater good,” the source was quoted as having told CNN, reportedly adding that talks between Ukraine and FIFA are ongoing.

    See: Qatar World Cup controversy means sponsors are walking a tightrope

    MarketWatch has reached out to FIFA and Zelensky’s office with requests for comment.

    Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, Zelensky has used high-profile video addresses to rally international support for his embattled nation. These have included addresses to the U.N. General Assembly, the U.S. Congress, Britain’s House of Commons, the German Bundestag, the European Parliament and a G-20 summit, as well as video-link appearances at the Grammys and the Cannes Film Festival.

    The last World Cup was held in Russia, with Russian President Vladimir Putin in attendance as France defeated Croatia 4-2 in the final. (FIFA, controversially, announced its host-country selections for 2018 and 2022 — Russia and Qatar — on the same December day in 2010.)

    The 2022 tournament is perhaps the most controversial in World Cup history, with Qatar facing a barrage of criticism over its treatment of migrant workers and its approach to LGBTQ+ rights in the country.

    Now read: British band the Farm blocks McDonald’s from using hit song in Qatar World Cup ad

    The criticism of Qatar, the first Arab nation to host a World Cup, reached a crescendo before the tournament kicked off last month. During a press conference on the eve of the opening game, FIFA’s president, Gianni Infantino, launched into a lengthy defense of the decision to hold the tournamentin Qatar and accused the West of “hypocrisy.”

    This World Cup is also the first to take place during the northern hemisphere’s winter. Traditionally, the tournament takes place in June and July, but this year’s tournament was moved to minimize the impact of Qatar’s searing heat.

    See: For Budweiser, Qatar World Cup has been a tale of tough logistics and quick thinking

    Branding experts have observed that this controversial World Cup poses challenges for the big-name corporations involved in the event. FIFA’s list of partners includes U.S. corporate titans Coca-Cola Co.
    KO,
    -0.57%
     and Visa Inc. 
    V,
    -0.49%    ,
      who are both involved in the Qatar event. McDonald’s Corp. 
    MCD,
    -2.06%
    and Crypto.com are also World Cup sponsors.

    The tournament’s beer sponsor, Budweiser, an Anheuser-Busch InBev
    BUD,
    -0.18%
    brand, has had a particularly eventful several weeks in Qatar. In an abrupt reversal just two days before the soccer showpiece kicked, Qatar organizers banned beer sales in the tournament’s eight stadiums.

    The reversal of that decision appeared to take Budweiser by surprise, with the company tweeting “Well, this is awkward …” before deleting the post. Budweiser quickly shrugged off the beer ban and promised a huge victory party for the country that wins the soccer showpiece.

    Fox Sports, which is owned by Fox Corp.
    FOX,
    -0.21%    ,
     a sister company of MarketWatch publisher Dow Jones’s parent company, News Corp
    NWSA,
    +0.28%    ,
      holds English-language broadcast rights in the U.S. to the Qatar World Cup.

    Read on: Could Qatar’s ‘reusable’ World Cup stadium end up in Uruguay? There are some amazing plans for tournament venues.

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