Nathan Bomey

USA TODAY

The expansion of its all-day breakfast menu and a Big Mac promotion helped lift McDonald's to better-than-expected revenue and profit in the first quarter.

The fast-food chain edged expectations as it faces pressure to bolster its business amid stiff competition from upstart burger chain rivals as well as low grocery costs that lure more people to cook at home.

Aiming for a turnaround, sales at U.S. restaurants open at least a year rose 1.7% in the first quarter. Globally, comparable sales rose 4%.

"Today, we’re running better restaurants. We're keenly focused on operations excellence and the fundamentals of quality, service, cleanliness and value and it’s making a difference for customers," CEO Steve Easterbrook said during the earnings call Tuesday. "The greatest opportunities are at the core of our business and we’re continuing to gain momentum as we build a better McDonald's."

The company's recent decision to add more products to its all-day breakfast menu is paying dividends. It also attributed the quarter's momentum in part to Big Mac promotions that offered a larger size than the original, the Grand Mac, and a miniature, the Mac Jr. McDonald's also drove foot traffic to stores by discounting soft drink prices to $1 and by slashing the price of its McCafe coffee drinks to $2.

Easterbrook said the chain is also working to bring in new customers while turning casual diners into committed ones.

The company recorded revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, beating S&P Global Market Intelligence estimates of $5.53 billion. That was down 3.9% from a year earlier, but McDonald's said the decline was largely attributable to the company's effort to turn certain company-owned locations into franchises.

McDonald's posted net income of $1.21 billion, up 8% and beating S&P Global Market Intelligence estimates of $1.11 billion.

McDonald's stock rose $7.54, or 5.61% to $141.76 in late-day trading.

UBS analyst Dennis Geiger, in a note to investors, cited the role that the Big Mac promotion and discounted coffee played in earnings, saying that the company can now look to multiple sources of sales growth as it enters the next quarter. Also, he says he's looking for new products, continued value-oriented pricing and the ability of customers to order and pay on mobile devices.

Follow USA TODAY reporter Nathan Bomey on Twitter @NathanBomey. Zlati Meyer contributed to this report.