McDonald’s Chris Kempczinski speaks about expanding raw beef at a McDonald’s event in Oak Brook, Illinois.
Richa Naidu | Reuters
mcdonalds is expected to provide more details about its new strategy to win back customers at an investor day in Chicago on Wednesday.
In June, the company announced a new global growth plan called McDonald’s > NEXT at its biennial global conference for franchisees. Pillars of this strategy include new restaurant designs, better food and drink, and consumer-driven innovation. But executives have provided few other details, pending Wednesday’s event.
The presentation, nearly three years after McDonald’s last investor day, comes after McDonald’s U.S. operations disappointed in the most recent quarter. The chain’s same-store sales rose only 0.8%, and restaurant traffic declined.
CEO Chris Kempczinski said the problem was not a question of chain-wide strategy, but rather execution flaws, such as mixed implementation of value offerings. Skye Anderson, who was named president of McDonald’s U.S. operations after a weak quarter, is likely to speak on Wednesday.
Mr. Kempczinski, Mr. Anderson and other McDonald’s executives must convince investors who are increasingly skeptical that the fast-food giant can win customers in the short term.
Over the past 12 months, the stock price has fallen 18%, and McDonald’s market capitalization has fallen to about $175 billion. of S&P500 It rose 16% over the same period as optimism about artificial intelligence offset concerns about consumers’ financial health.
Here’s what you can expect to see covered in McDonald’s presentation:
1) Value strategy
Over the past two years, value has become extremely important for restaurants competing for a small number of customers who value both price and experience. While I like chains, taco bell and Chile’s McDonald’s has been struggling lately as its valuable products have been buried under other promotional messages.
Additionally, franchisees are pushing back against discounts that are hurting operators’ profits, even as sales have grown, especially as rising beef prices have increased costs. Executives revealed in August that only about two-thirds of McDonald’s U.S. franchisees have adopted the company’s recent $3 or less menu. Meanwhile, McDonald’s allows its franchisees to set their own prices, but the company is evaluating how operators’ menu prices help deliver value.
Analysts say McDonald’s will continue to focus on value and franchisee cooperation will be key to its success.
“We expect MCD to use this event to make clear to franchisees that compliance with pricing recommendations will be a key factor in evaluating contract renewals,” John Tower, an analyst at Citi Research, wrote in a note to clients of his Investor’s Day forecast.
Tower also lowered the company’s price target from $345 to $310 per share, citing investor concerns about franchisee buy-in to the company’s overall strategy.
2) Menu update
McDonald’s in Lovell, Florida on February 7, 2026.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
In addition to value, McDonald’s is trying to attract customers by offering menu items with enhanced taste and quality.
McDonald’s has changed its menu in recent years to include more chicken options as beef prices rise and rivals such as Chick-fil-A threaten sales. At the franchisee conference, executives shared that the next evolution of the company’s chicken products will be hand-breaded. Chick-fil-A, Raising Cane’s, and Popeyes all bread and coat their chicken instead of using machines. This technique usually results in a crispier outside, but it takes more time and effort.
McDonald’s has recently been focusing on expanding its drink options in addition to chicken. McDonald’s is rolling out a variety of beverage options in the U.S., including processed sodas, soft drinks and energy drinks, after ending its beverage-focused spinoff CosMc’s. Some international markets, such as Germany, are also starting to offer more drinks.
“The key thing, and I’ll talk more about this at our investor day, is beverages,” Chief Financial Officer Ian Bowden said on an earnings call in August.
3) Restaurant renovation
Approximately every 10 years, McDonald’s requires franchisees to renovate their restaurants to meet new aesthetic guidelines and improve technology and equipment.
And it looks like the restaurant will be renovated again as part of its growth strategy. At the convention, franchisees got their first look at the new restaurant design.
McDonald’s typically provides some support to franchisees who renovate their restaurants. Upgraded locations typically generate higher sales, but operators need to fund renovations at a time when borrowing costs are rising. And thanks to rising tariffs and energy prices, construction costs are also rising.
As a result of the retrofit program, McDonald’s capital expenditures could increase by $600 million to $900 million in 2027 and 2028 over projected spending in 2026, according to a research note from BMO Capital Markets analyst Andrew Strelzyk. But executives are expected to share the company’s own projected costs for the retrofit program at an investor day.
4) Cost reduction
McDonald’s is likely to spend more on capital expenditures over the next two years, but the company is also likely to look to cut costs in other areas.
Borden said in August that McDonald’s would announce its general and administrative spending outlook during an investor day.
Bernstein analyst Danilo Gargiulo said in a note to clients that McDonald’s could target general and administrative expenses to less than 2% of companywide sales, down from the current target of 2.2%. In recent years, the company has reduced its workforce as part of organizational restructuring.
McDonald’s will indirectly reduce costs by refranchising some of its restaurants.
Selling a restaurant to a franchisee means that McDonald’s is no longer responsible for the operating costs and capital investments necessary to successfully operate a restaurant. Borden said the company will also share details about these plans at its investor day.
