MCD McDonalds Corp

By Anne Steele 

McDonald's Corp. posted robust same-store sales in the U.S. and globally, helping assuage investor fears of a leveling-off in enthusiasm over its all-day breakfast roll-out.

Shares in the company rose 2.1% premarket to $137.05.

During the March quarter, the burger chain's global comparable sales jumped 4%, well above the 1.3% increase anticipated by analysts in a Consensus Metrix survey.

Comparable sales climbed 1.7% in the U.S., building on the prior-year launch of its all-day breakfast service. The company said first-quarter performance benefited from the expansion of all-day breakfast offerings as well as Big Mac and beverage promotions. Analysts anticipated a 0.8% decline as Chief Executive Steve Easterbrook warned the company would face a difficult comparison in the quarter.

"There's a sense of urgency across the business as we take actions to retain existing customers, regain lapsed customers and convert casual customers to committed customers," Mr. Easterbrook said Tuesday. He said the company is continuing to build a more personalized and enjoyable visit in order to gain traffic in an increasingly competitive industry.

McDonald's has been transferring ownership of its many restaurants to independent operators. The model, which other fast-food chains have been adopting, lets companies collect a piece of sales without the costs and headache of managing hundreds of stores.

During the first quarter, revenue from franchised restaurants climbed 5.3% as sales from company-operated restaurants, which makes up a larger chunk of the top line, slipped 9.1%.

In all, McDonald's earned $1.21 billion, or $1.47 a share, up from $1.12 billion, or $1.25 a share, a year earlier. Revenue slipped 3.9% to $5.68 billion. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected $1.33 a share on $5.53 billion in revenue.

Write to Anne Steele at Anne.Steele@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 25, 2017 08:56 ET (12:56 GMT)

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