Why McDonald's Should Team Up With Apple

Nothing could stop the light and compact Big MacBook Air. Seriously, nothing could. “Would it be an edible product?” my colleague asked. But we don't need to answer that right now. All investors need to know is that McDonald's MCD and Apple AAPL are two of the most important corporations in the world. McDonald's MCD has been on fire this week. After hitting a new 52-week high, the quick-service restaurant leader has continued to rise following the news that the company had increased its profits for the third consecutive quarter. Much of the growth came from France and Asia – a strong indication that the McDonald's global growth initiatives have been successful. The company plans to increase that growth by spending $1 billion to redesign 14,000 U.S. locations. During the last quarter, analysts were quick to reiterate their McDonald's ratings, most of which were Buy or Neutral. Analysts are also impressed with today's results. This morning, Deutsche Bank released a report about the firm's strong sales. “While shares were strong coming into the quarter, these results far exceeded expectations, particularly after a somewhat soft May sales report,” Deutsche Bank wrote. J.P. Morgan weighed in with a new report as well, writing, “All in all we believe results and commentary on July trends suggest the company is maintaining its share-taking momentum into the back half of 2011.” Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs instantly saw the potential for the stock to trade “meaningfully higher” on McDonald's impressive earnings. “Consensus FY earnings estimates should move higher, and we see the potential for an upward re-rating of the multiple given the unexpectedly strong growth trajectory,” Goldman Sachs wrote in a report. Just days ago, Apple impressed investors with enormous iPhone and iPad sales, record quarterly revenue, and record quarterly net profit. Mac OS X Lion is flying off the digital shelves. And even though Apple is finally catching up to the demand for iPad 2, the device continues to rule the tablet market. If Apple and McDonald's joined forces, the two would be unstoppable. Just think about some of the products that could come from this union: Big MacBook Big MacBook Air (half the calories, same great taste!) iHappy Meal (featuring a tiny iPod replica that plays 90 seconds of a hit song) Baked “Apple” Pie (an Apple logo on every slice – strictly for branding purposes) Now in theory these would all be food items. But a Big MacBook Air could also be the first 15- or 17-inch version of the existing MacBook Air. I'm no engineer, but I'm sure there are many other concoctions the teams at Apple and McDonald's could splice together. While this might sound like a silly (if not crazy) idea, the reality is that these are two of the strongest companies – with two of the strongest brands and two of the most recognizable logos – in the world. The only differences between them aren't that different at all: one releases iconic tech products, the other releases iconic food items. If McDonald's can find a way to sell something as old and tiring as oatmeal, and if Apple can successfully push a white version of an old phone, who knows what the two of them could accomplish together? Follow me @LouisBedigian