Here’s why McDonald’s investors are upset Easterbrook is out as CEO

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McDonald’s Corp. investors have good reason to be disappointed that Steve Easterbrook will no longer run the fast-food giant, as the stock had outperformed its quick-service peers and the broader stock market during his tenure as chief executive.

The stock MCD, -3.27%   fell $6.24, or 3.2%, in afternoon trading Monday, enough to be the biggest drag on the Dow Jones Industrial Average’s DJIA, +0.27%  price. The stock’s selloff reduced the Dow’s price by about 42 points, while the Dow rose 88 points.

McDonald’s stock is now the worst Dow performer over the past three months, falling 12.5% over that time while the Dow gained 3.6%.

Don’t miss: McDonald’s downgraded after Easterbrook ouster over concerns about stock disruption.

FactSet, MarketWatch

The company said Easterbrook was out as chief executive officer, effective immediately, following determination by the board of directors that he “violated company policy and demonstrated poor judgment” involving a recent consensual relationship with an employee. Easterbrook will be replaced by Chris Kempczinski.

Read: Even consensual office romances are a bad idea, and the research proves it

Shares of McDonald’s had run up 96.1% since Easterbrook took over as CEO on March 1, 2015 through Friday. This is how the shares of some of the publicly traded companies listed on the noncompete agreement signed by Easterbrook:

Stock performances during Easterbrook’s tenure as CEO of McDonald’s
Company Ticker Price gain (decline)
McDonald’s Corp. MCD +96.1%
Wendy’s Co. WEN +86.9%
Restaurant Brands International Inc. (parent of Burger King, Popeye’s, Tim Hortons) QSR +47.4%
Yum! Brands Inc. (parent of KFC, Taco Bell, KFC) YUM +70.9%
Starbucks Corp. SBUX +78.0%
Jack in the Box Inc. JACK -14.9%
Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc. DNKN +63.5%
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. CMG +15.6%
Papa John’s International Inc. PZZA -6.2%
Domino’s Pizza Inc. DPZ +165.2%
PotBelly Corp. PBPB -66.3%
SPDR Consumer Discretionary Select Sector exchange-traded fund XLY 60.1%
Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA 50.8%
McDonald’s Corp., FactSet, MarketWatch

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