McDonald's reported second quarter earnings on Monday which reflected a profit increase of 4 percent, but still fell short of Wall Street expectation due to economic instability on its customers around the word.
The world's largest burger chain also said July sales are expected to be relatively flat and warned of a tough year ahead.
The Oak Brook-based company said global sales edged up 1 percent at restaurants open at least a year for the three months ended June 30. The figure rose by the same amount in the U.S., where the company has been trying to adapt to changing eating habits with items such as its new chicken wraps and egg-white breakfast sandwiches.
Revenue rose 2 percent to $7.08 billion. Analysts were looking for $7.21 billion. For the quarter, the company earned $1.4 billion, or $1.38 per share. That's up from $1.35 billion, or $1.32 per share, a year ago.
Meanwhile, same-store sales at U.S. restaurants open more than a year were slightly negative in June, according to Don Thompson in a conference call with analysts Monday. The estimate is expected to be flat in July globally.
"While the informal eating out market remains challenging and economic uncertainty is pressuring consumer spending, we're continuing to differentiate the McDonald's experience by uniting consumer insights, innovation and execution," Thompson said in the call.
In Asia, the Middle East and Africa, sales also dipped 0.3%, primarily because of negative results in China, Australia and Japan.
