Fast food chain McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) said Tuesday that global comparable sales grew 5.5% for the month of October.
Analysts were expecting a 4.1% gain for the world's largest hamburger chain.
Comparable store sales are a key metric used to gauge a corporation's financial health. The metric is important because it excludes recently opened or closed stores.
In the US, comparable sales rose 5.2%, topping analyst expectations of 3.2%, driven by its Monopoly game promotion, and as customers purchased staple items like Big Mac’s, Fruit and Maple Oatmeal, Chicken McNuggets and McCafe beverages.
In Europe – McDonald's largest market – sales grew 4.8% fuelled by performance in France, Russia and the UK. Analysts had forecast growth of 3.4% in the region.
Sales in Asia-Pacific, Middle-East and Africa climbed 6.1% for the month led by Australia, China and Japan.
McDonald’s has more than 33,000 locations worldwide, 80% of which are franchised, serving 64 million people in 114 countries.
The Oak Brook, Illinois-based company’s stock fell $0.54, or 0.57%, to $94.08 a share, Tuesday afternoon on the New York Stock Exchange.