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McDonald’s Profit Rises 11% but US Visits Fall

McDonald's beat profit and sales-growth forecasts in the third quarter, but US same-store sales still fell as fewer customers came through the door, and revenue came in short of expectations.

McDonald’s (NYSE: MCD), the fast-food chain, reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of $3.57 a share earlier today, beating forecasts, but US comparable sales fell 0.2% as customer visits declined. Revenue of $7,157m missed the Zacks consensus of $7.28bn.

The shares closed yesterday at $263.04, down from $265.64 on Monday, before the results. That is 23% below the weekly-close high of $341.06 in February and 13% above the autumn low weekly close of $231.89. Wall Street opens at 2.30pm UK time.

MCD.US

Adjusted earnings per share, which exclude $0.06 of restructuring charges, rose 11% from $3.22 a year earlier and beat the Zacks consensus of $3.36 from 11 analysts. Global comparable sales, which track restaurants open at least a year, rose 1.5%, against a Bloomberg consensus of 1.4%.

In the US, comparable sales fell 0.2%, better than the fall of about 0.5% that Bloomberg consensus expected but down from growth of 2.4% in the third quarter of 2025. Chairman and chief executive Chris Kempczinski pointed to the second half of the period:

McDonald’s delivered another quarter of global growth, with solid performance across much of our international business. In the U.S., we’re encouraged by improvement as the quarter progressed following our intervention on value.

Chris Kempczinski, Chairman and CEO, McDonald’s

Negative guest counts were largely offset by higher spend per check, and McDonald’s did not publish a traffic figure. It was the first US decline since early 2025, after value focus and restored in-app deals had pushed September positive. Fast-food traffic across the US sector fell 2.6%, according to Revenue Management Solutions.

Line chart of McDonald's share price from August to early November 2026, showing a fall to an autumn low and a rebound into Q3 results.
McDonald’s shares rebounded into Q3 results after an autumn low (daily close, 3 August to 3 November 2026).

Skye Anderson, president of McDonald’s USA, is working on a new value menu for 2027, and Citi analyst Jon Tower expects another attempt at entry-level value in early 2027. Before the results, BTIG analyst Peter Saleh had flagged franchisee concerns over lower-income customers, promotions and crowded marketing calendars.

The test is whether promotions and the 2027 menu bring visits back, not just hold spend per visit. The quarterly dividend rises 4% to $1.93.

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