McDonald’s to stop issuing monthly sales figure reports

CEO says quarterly data better reflects value in long term.

McDonald’s is the latest major chain to back away from sharing monthly sales data, a move it is making as it works on a turnaround.

A dozen years ago during an earlier overhaul, McDonald’s opted to give investors a closer look at its performance and began issuing monthly sales reports. As the restaurant giant, based in suburban Chicago, works on becoming “a modern, progressive burger company,” as CEO Steve Easterbrook says, it is now ending that practice.

Easterbrook said Wednesday that McDonald’s would stop issuing monthly sales reports this summer, opting instead to give only quarterly assessments.

The company is also trying to make improvements in its U.S. business, including toasting buns longer to help deliver hotter sandwiches, Easterbrook said during a Bernstein Strategic Decisions Conference in New York on Wednesday.

He said the company would emphasize value in the U.S. this summer, with “a nationally consistent promotion featuring one of our most popular items.” He did not provide details on which menu items would be featured.

McDonald’s began re- leasing detailed monthly sales reports in February 2003, just weeks after it posted its first quarterly loss, and did away with quarterly and annual earnings guidance.

Investors and other industry watchers have come to rely on McDonald’s monthly sales tallies, paying close attention to same-store sales, or sales at units open at least 13 months, to gauge how the chain is doing.

Quarterly results are more closely linked to a longer-term view of shareholder value, Easterbrook said.

Sales at restaurants open at least 13 months have fallen globally in four consecutive quarters and are down six straight quarters in the United States.