Investing.com - Fast food giant McDonald's (N:MCD) reported better than expected fourth quarter earnings and revenue figures on Monday, sending its shares higher in pre-market trade.
McDonald’s said earnings per share came in at $1.31 in the three months ended December 31, beating expectations for earnings of $1.23 per share and up 16% from the same period a year earlier.
The company’s fourth quarter revenue totaled $6.34 billion, above forecasts for sales of $6.22 billion but down 3.5% from revenue of $6.57 billion in the fourth quarter of 2014.
Global comparable sales increase of 5.0%, reflecting positive comparable sales in all segments.
In the U.S., fourth quarter comparable sales increased 5.7%, benefiting from the October launch of All Day Breakfast and, to a lesser extent, unseasonably mild weather.
"We took bold, urgent action in 2015 to reset the business and position McDonald's (N:MCD) to deliver sustained profitable growth," said McDonald's President and Chief Executive Officer Steve Easterbrook.
Immediately after the earnings announcement, McDonald’s shares rallied $3.48, or 2.94%, to hit $121.88 in trading prior to the opening bell compared to Friday's closing price of $118.40.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock futures pointed to a lower open. The Dow futures fell 43 points, or 0.27%, the S&P 500 futures shed 6 points, or 0.3%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures declined 12 points, or 0.27%.