Jack in the Box (JACK) dropped in yesterday's after-hours session upon news of the company's Q4 results. You can't blame the bottom line for the poor stock performance. The fast-food joint earned 70 cents per share from continuing operations versus the 45 cents per share from continuing operations earned in the comparable quarter. Did such a growth rate deserve a nearly 6% cut in share price? Analysts were only looking for 55 cents per share, according to Earnings.com.

Well, Wall Street apparently wasn't satisfied with the outlook, as this Reuters article points out. Traders are obviously more concerned with where Jack in the Box may be heading as opposed to where it's been.

For McDonald's (MCD), 32,000 restaurants in 100 countries isn't enough. The quick service restaurant announced in a meeting with Wall Street analysts that it will open 1,000 new restaurants next year. Most will be in the United States, China, Australia, Russia, Germany and France. Don't expect to see any in Iceland, though, as the company is closing its three restaurants there and has no plans to return in the near future.

The company is also looking to rehabilitate the interiors and exteriors of another 2,300 locations in 2010 – approximately half of them in Europe. In all, this should cost around $2.4 billion. For 2009, McDonald's expects its capital expenditures to reach $2.1 billion on 900 new restaurant openings. The chain is increasing its rate of new restaurant openings by more than 10% from 2009 to 2010.

Even the cheap stuff gets cut when jobs are scarce. Burger King (NYSE: BKC), the second largest burger chain, saw fiscal first quarter profit fall 6% year-over-year, as diners opted to make their own meals at home.

Another part of the problem, though, is that competitors have cut their prices aggressively in order to bring customers through the door, a move that can have an upside for market share but doesn't always restore revenue lost to a recession.

A lot of earnings reports were issued last week. The market was busy sorting them all out. I'm going to take a fast look at several of the issuing companies.

American Express (NYSE: AXP): Don't leave home without it. Good advice for the card, perhaps, but what about the company? Should your portfolio leave home and forget this stock? I'd say so. It's not that American Express lost the earnings game. On the contrary, Bloomberg reported a beat. American Express earned 44 cents per share from continuing operations, adjusted. This was six pennies ahead of forecasts. Okay, I applaud such performance. And shares are way off the single-digit 52-week low. Thing is, I'm in love with another card business. Visa (NYSE: V). As I've stated before, I enjoy the beauty of Visa's lower-risk model. It doesn't have to put up with loan risk. Yes, the situation at American Express might be improving, but I'm not going to buy this one.

Here are some highlights from last week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• AirTran Holdings Inc. (NYSE: AAI) reported its third consecutive quarterly profit and will increase capacity.
• Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) shares soared after it reported very strong Q3 numbers.
• Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) reported stellar Q4 results, driven by the popularity of Macs and iPhones.
• BlackRock Inc. (NYSE: BLK) Q3 earnings soared, due in part to a tax benefit, and assets managed grew.
• Broadcom Corp. (NASDAQ: BRCM) revenue surged sequentially but note the would be flat going forward.
• Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) beat Q3 earnings expectations and shares rose though revenue slumped.

Ray Kroc did not start McDonald's (NYSE: MCD). But he was the one that had the vision and energy to turn it into a global powerhouse.

Back in 1977, Kroc wrote a book about his story, called Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald's. The title is appropriate. You see, he did not get involved in McDonald's until he was 52 (in 1954).

What I like about Kroc's book is that he has some simple advice for building a successful business. And, it's always a good idea to look at the fundamentals. So, here are some of the takeaways:

One of my wonderful friends, Ms. P, asked me for some guidance on how she might allocate $50,000 currently earning peanuts in a money market account. Though she is decades from becoming a grandmother, after a brief discussion about her financial parameters, it became clear to me that she was looking for a "granny fund."

In reality, my recommendations would be suitable, and perhaps desirable, for many passive investors as well.

The $50,000 is a portion of money Ms. P has set aside to purchase a home, which might happen in six months, but could also be pushed out further, depending on the economy and her situation. Basically, she wants to cover all her bases because she might need the money at any time and does not want to be caught short, while at the same time she would like to generate some revenue without taking any big risks.

Burger King Holdings Inc. (NYSE: BKC) announced plans Wednesday to overhaul its 12,000 locations worldwide. The fast-food giant is seeking a sleeker, futuristic look that includes LCD-screen menus, rotating chandeliers, and corrugated metal and brick accents (see pictures at the above link) on the inside, as well as metal canopies and additional signs on the exterior.

The new upscale design, called 20/20, is expected to cost franchisees between $300,000 to $600,000 per restaurant. Some 60 locations have already been remodeled, including in Miami, Mexico City, Edinburgh, and Shanghai, and 75 more are expected to be completed by the end of 2010. All new restaurants will be built using the 20/20 design.

Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM), which competes with McDonald's (NYSE: MCD), Burger King (NYSE: BKC), and Wendy's/Arby's Group (NYSE: WEN) for the right to feed consumers on the go around the world, issued a Q3 report after the bell on Tuesday that was decent in many respects. Earnings per share on an adjusted basis increased over 20% to 70 cents. This performance absolutely embarrassed the analysts, who were looking for a mere 58 cents per share according to our earnings preview.

So, that was one of the decent parts. Actually, I'd say it was a little more than decent. But, unfortunately, the top line didn't grow. Total revenues actually declined 2%.

On the surface, I suppose the market is telling you that Yum! Brands would indeed make a good earnings trade. Not only is the stock up nicely this afternoon, but it isn't too far from a 52-week high.

Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) kicks off another earnings season this week, and analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters are looking for another net loss for the third quarter. Can we take that as a sign of things to come, or as a bellwether for the economy? Well, barring a big downside surprise, this will be the third narrower quarterly loss for Alcoa. But while Alcoa beat estimates in July, it missed them in April. Alcoa's shares, on the other hand, are up 145.6% since the March low, which is well more than twice as much either the Dow or the S&P 500.

During its third quarter, New York-based Alcoa continued restructuring efforts, remained a part of the DJIA Sustainability Index, and declared a quarterly dividend. It is expected to report a net loss of $0.12 per share for the three months that ended in September. That compares to a profit of $0.37 in the same period of last year. Third-quarter revenue is forecast to have fallen 38.3% to $4.5 billion. Analysts so far expect to see a profit in the fourth quarter, but not for the full year. Alcoa has missed earnings expectations in three of the past four quarters. The long-term EPS growth forecast is 20.0%, again much better than the S&P 500. The First Call consensus recommendation is to hold AA; CNBC concurs that now is not the time to buy. At $12.82, shares are 30.0% higher than three months ago, but 33.4% lower than a year ago.

Late Thursday, McDonald's (NYSE: MCD) announced a 10% increase to its cash dividend. The fast-food firm will now shell out 55 cents per share each quarter, bringing its total quarterly dividend payout to roughly $600 million. The increase will cost McDonald's about $220 million per year. This most recent dividend hike continues a long-term trend for Mickey D's, which has raised its quarterly payout every year since 1976.

In other MCD news, Bernstein initiated coverage of the stock with an "outperform" rating. The brokerage firm likes McDonald's because of its broad global footprint, with Bernstein noting that restaurants more heavily dependent on the sluggish U.S. market could struggle.

Many entrepreneurs have attempted to appropriate McDonald's (NYSE: MCD) brand recognition to benefit their own businesses; witness MacJoy, McMunchies, McAllen, McSleep, and McChina Wok Away to name but a few. But the burger chain will have none of that and has aggressively pursued the protection of its trademark and name.

McCurry of Malaysia, however, has finally succeeded in convincing a local court to allow it to continue to sell its food under the McCurry name, as long as its menu remains distinct from that of McDonald's. The ruling marks the end of an eight-year legal battle.