MCD McDonalds Corp

By Cara Lombardo 

McDonald's Corp. is figuring out how to win back lapsed customers and keep its regulars coming in for more.

Low-price cold drinks and a new line of premium sandwiches boosted same-store sales in the U.S. by 3.9% in the company's second quarter, while global same-store sales rose 6.6%.

"We're building a better McDonald's and more customers are noticing," Chief Executive Steve Easterbrook said.

Though second-quarter revenue slipped 3% from a year ago to $6.05 billion, McDonald's beat on the bottom line, topping adjusted-earnings-per-share estimates at $1.73. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had forecast earnings of $1.62 a share on revenue of $5.96 billion.

The fast-food chain's strategy in recent months has been to cater to its core customer base and offer better prices rather than focus on attracting new business.

It also has been heavily focused on improving customer experience in its restaurants after losing traffic to other fast-food chains. Investors are eager for more details on a plan to help franchisees upgrade restaurants with self-order kiosks and other features if they agree to chip in for a value menu national advertising campaign.

McDonald's also plans to encourage underperforming franchisees to sell their restaurants to operators who have logged better results.

The stock is up 25% this year, handily outperforming the S&P 500, which is up 10%. Shares, which closed Monday at $151.85, rose 2.6% in premarket trading Tuesday.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 25, 2017 09:22 ET (13:22 GMT)

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