How the little children love Ronald McDonald. Now investors love him, too.
In the third quarter, global comparable store sales increased 7.1%, which is pretty hard to do when a company is as large as McDonald's (NYSE: MCD, Stock Forum) and the economy is rough.
Earnings per share from continuing operations were $1.05, a 27% increase over the prior year.
North America, where results should have been hurt most by the recession did fine. McDonald's U.S. had highest sales increase of 2008, with third-quarter comparable sales up 4.7% and operating income growth of 9%.
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