McDonald's Raises Prices and Still Posts Stellar Sales

Despite rising prices, fans of the Golden Arches are still coming back for more.

According CNN Money, more customers showed up to the Golden Arches for the fifth quarter in a row, with demand highest in the United States, Europe, and China. While overall sales were down due to the company selling corporate-owned restaurants to franchisees, same-store sales growth was stellar.

Shares of McDonald's rose 5 percent in early trading on Monday, with same-store sales rising 2.9 percent in the United States and 5.5 percent globally. Meanwhile, since Steve Easterbrook took over as CEO in March 2015, the company's stock has risen nearly 70 percent.

The news may come as a surprise given that the fast food chain has been raising prices, though McDonald's has also introduced a slew of new incentives to keep customers coming back. Among the latest introductions are fresh beef patties in its Quarter Pounders, a kale salad, and its new and revamped Dollar Menu.

The stellar sales are a breath of relief following news in March that the fast food chain had its worse day since the Golden Arches started tracking data in 1972.

Some of their customers, however, might be heading to other fast-food joints.

@McDonalds there is no reason to raise prices cause you went from Frozen to fresh burgers and your products. You burgers are still frozen that delivers your food. 🌊🚢 Sinking ship 🤥 @Wendys

— Swisscheese007 (@Swisscheese007) April 30, 2018

The higher prices have people feeling like their food might not be worth it anymore, while others are simply worried for the future of the franchise.

What I've always wondered; will McDonalds have to close down or raise their prices after all this is over?

— Wish (@wishfulldreamz) April 29, 2018

It's understandable that some would worry after McDonald's faced a financial hiccup recently.

Shares of McDonald's Corp. closed March 2 down 4.8 percent, the worst dollar decline in the company's history as a publicly traded company. It was also the worst percentage drop since October 2008.

The fast-food chain also experienced its worst weekly percentage decline for shares since 2008 and the sharpest total dollar decline for a week ever, with shares of the Dow Jones Industrial Average component off 4.9 percent, or $7.67.

The lackluster sales came on the heels of the introduction of the revamped Dollar Menu in January, McDonald's stock falling more than 8 percent since the beginning of the year and stock trading down slightly to $158.24 at the time.

On top of falling stocks, McDonald's customers have been vocal in their stance of not lovin' the new Dollar Menu. Some customers have stated that the menu confuses employees, while other claim that the former two for $3 deal was a better option. One customer dislikes the new menu so much that they created an 800-word blog titled "McDonald's Unveiled Their New Dollar Menu And It Kinda Sucks."

However, McDonald's did not seem too worried about its customers' initial opinion, CFO Kevin Ozan stating that "It takes a few months...to embed in customers' minds when you have a new platform because it's not a quick deal. You're now changing their daily mindset of when they go in."