(Bloomberg) -- McDonald's Corp., which is starting to revive sales, is incurring about $235 million in charges related to selling locations to franchisees, cutting costs and moving its corporate headquarters.
The pretax charges, which amount to about 20 cents a share after taxes, were taken in the second quarter, the Oak Brook, Illinois-based company said in a statement on Thursday. McDonald's will incur additional charges related to its strategic moves.
The charges are the result of Chief Executive Officer Steve Easterbrook's turnaround plan, which includes refranchising restaurants and cutting general and administrative expenses. Last year, the company said it was planning to sell 4,000 of its stores globally by the end of 2018. It also is targeting a $500 million cut in annual costs, which will mostly be realized by the end of next year. Last month, McDonald's said it's planning to move its headquarters from the suburbs to downtown Chicago -- another contributor to the impairment charges.
The stock was little changed at $120.80 in late trading in New York. The Big Mac seller has gained 25 percent in the past year, while the Standard & Poor's 500 Index has increased just 0.8 percent.
McDonald's will report full second-quarter results on July 26.
To contact the reporter on this story: Leslie Patton in Chicago at lpatton5@bloomberg.net. To contact the editors responsible for this story: Kevin Orland at korland@bloomberg.net, Mark Schoifet
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