McDonald’s profit nearly doubled in Q2: ‘we’re neutral on the stock’

McDonald’s Corp (NYSE: MCD) reported a near 100% increase in its second-quarter profit on Thursday. Its shares are up 2.0% at writing.

What drove strength in McDonald’s second quarter?

The fast-food chain attributed strength in its recently concluded quarter to price increases and positive guest count. On CNBC’s “Worldwide Exchange”, Bank of America analyst Sara Senatore said:

They’ve brought back Grimace and they’ve done an amazing job using their IP to connect with customers. Marketing, and menu initiatives over the last couple of years have been one successful launch after another.

The multinational noted an 11.7% growth in its global same-store sales – well ahead of estimates. Overseas, much of it was related to Germany and the United Kingdom.

On Thursday, the burger giant also teased a spinoff restaurant it’s calling CosMc’s. McDonald’s stock is now up 13% versus the start of the year.

Notable figures in McDonald’s Q2 earnings print

• Earned $2.31 billion versus the year-ago $1.19 billion
• Per-share earnings also climbed from $1.60 to $3.15
• Adjusted EPS printed at $3.17 as per the press release
• Revenue jumped 14% year-on-year to $6.50 billion
• Consensus was $2.78 a share on $6.3 billion in revenue

McDonald’s also said today that it increased its market share in the second quarter as higher-income users traded down from more expensive dining locations. Still, BofA’s Senatore added:

This is such a great company, over time, very stable performer. But people are paying for growth and you have other concepts that are growing faster. That’s why we’re neutral on the McDonald’s stock.