Fast food chains have had an interesting year with the return of McDonald's dollar menu and America's desire to eat healthier. So what does it mean for the industry going into 2018? Jeff Tomasulo, CEO at Vespula Capital, and Chris Versace, Chief Investment Officer at Tematica Research, join Cheddar to discuss which chain will come out on top.
McDonald's stopped using the value meal strategy in 2013, and it has cost them $2.9 billion in sales, according to Tomasulo. He says the fast food restaurant game is all about volume and getting people in the door. Now that McDonald's brought it back, it's bringing in more foot traffic but also forcing other chains to discount their menus. Wendy's beefed up its "4 for $4" bundles in response to McDonald's dollar menu revival.
Other than price, these fast food chains also need to worry about food safety, something Chipotle has had a rough time with. Versace says if the company can fix the safety issue and get its cost structure in line, the stock could turn for the better in a very quick manner. He says company turnarounds tend to take time and unfortuneatly that shakes investor confidence.
Apple CEO Tim Cook said Thursday that the majority of iPhones sold in the U.S. in the current fiscal quarter will be sourced from India, while iPads and other devices will come from Vietnam as the company works to avoid the impact of President Trump’s tariffs on its business. Apple’s earnings for the first three months of the year topped Wall Street’s expectations thanks to high demand for its iPhones, and the company said tariffs had a limited effect on the fiscal second quarter’s results. Cook added that for the current quarter, assuming things don’t change, Apple expects to see $900 million added to its costs as a result of the tariffs.
