McDonald’s scores big with bacon and tech

McDonald’s has released decent first quarter results, partly thanks to free bacon and donut sticks on the breakfast menu. Existing outlets saw a turnover increase of 5.4 %.

Investments in tech and breakfast

Hamburger chain McDonald’s has been investing on several fronts to gain back its declining visitor numbers. The fast food group recently acquired the Plexure app as well as A.I. specialist Dynamic Yield, in order to improve the intelligence of its drive-in menus and the app. McDonald’s intends to continue with heavy tech investments throughout the rest of the year.

Simultaneously, the chain has also been pursuing ‘quick wins’, such as a free bacon day and new donut sticks that come with the coffee. the hamburger chain is also putting more effort into offering breakfast. The chain still has to fight for its position in that market, but according to CEO Steve Easterbrook it is already generating a good turnover.

Home deliveries (which currently represent 3 million dollars) form a segment that keeps growing. McDonald’s has also been updating its outlets with self-order kiosks and digital menu boards. “We remain focused on running better restaurants and elevating the experience for our customers by providing convenience on their terms through delivery, Experience of the Future, and our evolving digital channels,” said the CEO.

Strong comparable turnover growth

The efforts are already proving fruitful: while net turnover receded by 4 % to 4.96 billion dollars (4.5 billion euros) due to negative currency effects, McDonald’s performed above expectations. On a comparable basis, turnover in existing outlets increased by 5.4 %, while analysts were expecting 3.4 %. The chain mostly grew in the United Kingdom and France, although Easterbrook mentions widely carried momentum across all global segments.

Profits did remain stuck at 1.72 dollars per share (1.5 euros), slightly below expectations and quasi-stable compared to the previous year. Net profits even dropped from 1.38 billion dollars to 1.33 billion, which may be due to the chain’s many investments and innovations.