McDonald’s flips to a gain as investors focus on traction in the U.S.

McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) showed a slight gain in early trading on Tuesday, despite reporting global comparable sales below expectations.

On the earnings conference call, CEO Chris Kempczinski apologized for the E. Coli issue and said the outbreak appears to be contained. Crucially, he confirmed that McDonald’s (MCD) Quarter Pounder burgers would return to restaurants affected by an E. coli outbreak in the coming weeks after beef was ruled out as the source of the contamination.

Another highlight for the quarter was that strong demand for the chain’s value meals helped U.S. comparable sales flip back to positive growth. Kempczinski also said the chain is speeding up the launch of the Big Arch burger, and noted the McCrispy chicken sandwich will be in 70 markets by the end of the year. Notably, McDonald’s (MCD) expects to introduce a new value platform in the first quarter of 2025.

On Wall Street, Bank of America stayed cautious on McDonald’s (MCD) after the report. Analyst Sara Senatore said the bull case on MCD has been predicated on margin upside. “While MCD’s 3Q results suggest those expense opportunities exist, they have not proven sufficient to offset softer topline and MCD margin reinvestment in value,” she observed.

Shares of McDonald’s (MCD) were up 0.7% at 10:05 a.m.