CHARLOTTE, NC. — Shares of Krispy Kreme, Inc. soared more than 43% on March 26 on news that the Charlotte-based company will be expanding its donut partnership to all McDonald’s restaurants in the United States. The expansion will begin during the second half of 2024 and is expected to be completed by the end of 2026.
After closing at $12.45 on March 25, Krispy Kreme’s stock surged as high as $17.84 in mid-day trading on the New York Stock Exchange on March 26 before closing at $17.35. The $17.84 price was the highest mark since it reached $17.99 on Jan. 11, 2022.
Krispy Kreme’s share price closed at $21 on its first day of trading back on July 1, 2021, and remained above $17 for most of the next several months. However, by September 2022 it had dipped below $12 per share, and over the past 18 months it mostly has remained between $12 and $15.50.
Krispy Kreme first began working with McDonald’s in October 2022 when the latter began selling the former’s donuts at nine locations. The test was so successful that both companies expanded this partnership to 160 stores in February 2023.
Since the test began, Krispy Kreme has been scaling its supply chain to support further expansion of the program with McDonald’s.
“Significantly, by making Kreme Krispy accessible to fans nationwide through this partnership, we expect to more than double our points of access by the end of 2026,” said Josh Charlesworth, president and chief executive officer of Krispy Kreme. “The partnership accelerates the development of our existing delivered fresh daily channel, creating operating leverage through distribution density and production utilization.”
