Benzinga | Oct 27, 2021 11:03AM EDT

McDonald's Q3 Earnings Top Estimates, Partners With IBM On AOT Technology

* McDonald's Corp (NYSE:MCD) reported third-quarter FY21 sales growth of 14% year-on-year, to $6.2 billion, beating the analyst consensus of $6.03 billion.

* Global comparable sales increased 12.7% (10.2% on a 2-year basis). Comparable sales in the U.S. rose 9.6%, and the International Operated Markets segment rose 13.9%.

* Sales by company-operated restaurants grew 14% Y/Y to $2.6 billion, while sales from franchised restaurants rose 15% to $3.5 billion.

* Total operating costs and expenses rose 11% Y/Y to $3.2 billion.

* The operating margin was 48.2%, and operating income for the quarter rose 18.2% to $2.9 billion.

* Adjusted EPS of $2.76 beat the analyst consensus of $2.46.

* The company recently raised its quarterly cash dividend by 7% to $1.38 per share and announced the resumption of its share repurchase program.

* McDonald's also issued a separate statement that it agreed with International Business Machines Corp (NYSE:IBM) to accelerate further the development and deployment of its Automated Order Taking (AOT) technology.

* Under the deal, IBM will acquire McD Tech Labs, which was created to advance employee and customer-facing innovations following McDonald's 2019 acquisition of Apprente. The financial terms were not disclosed.

* Upon closing, the McD Tech Labs team will become part of the IBM Cloud & Cognitive Software division.

* Price Action: MCD shares are trading higher by 2.26% at $241.76 on the last check Wednesday.