Quick and cheap are two of the first words that come to mind when thinking about fast food. But some McDonald’s customers have criticized the restaurant giant over recent higher menu prices, prompting the CEO to address the issue of affordability during the company’s latest earning call.
McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski spoke to analysts on Monday morning about the fast food chain’s mixed fourth quarter results, as well as the global market impact with ongoing conflict in the Middle East and Muslim communities, and ultimately about how to re-engage lower-income customers.
After the earnings results were posted, McDonald’s shares tumbled nearly 4% on the New York Stock Exchange by closing.
While global same-store sales – meaning stores that have been open for at least a year – were up 3.4%, short of Wall Street’s expectations, Kempczinski said those earnings results were impacted by the war in the Middle East.
Domestically however, same-store sales were up by 4.3%, which was more closely aligned to previous quarters and company expectations for what the CEO called “normalized growth.”
In some way, it’s a bit like what Russia and others have successfully done in the U.S. socially. They only care about the tumult–the ups and downs. What causes it is irrelevant. The instability is key.