Yum Brands, the parent company of Pizza Hut, is initiating a thorough review of strategic options for the struggling pizza chain. The move comes amid declining sales and revenue for Pizza Hut in the US, where it operates around 6,500 stores but saw a 7% drop in sales in the first nine months of this year.
Despite its global footprint and growth in many markets, including China, which is its second-largest market outside the US, Pizza Hut faces intense competition from other pizza chains. The brand's performance has been hampered by large, outdated dine-in restaurants that cater to a customer preference for fast pickup and delivery options.
Yum CEO Chris Turner believes that Pizza Hut needs additional action to realize its full value, suggesting that selling the chain might be the best course of action. "The Pizza Hut team has been working hard to address business and category challenges," he said in a statement. "However, Pizza Hut's performance indicates the need to take additional action to help the brand realize its full value."
Yum Brands' shares rose nearly 7% following news of the review, with the company also reporting an 8% increase in third-quarter revenue thanks to strong sales at KFC and Taco Bell.
The decision comes as another 1950s-era dine-in icon, Denny's, has recently been sold to an investor group and taken private. Like Pizza Hut, Denny's has struggled with customers' shift to delivery and growing competition in casual dining options.
Despite its global footprint and growth in many markets, including China, which is its second-largest market outside the US, Pizza Hut faces intense competition from other pizza chains. The brand's performance has been hampered by large, outdated dine-in restaurants that cater to a customer preference for fast pickup and delivery options.
Yum CEO Chris Turner believes that Pizza Hut needs additional action to realize its full value, suggesting that selling the chain might be the best course of action. "The Pizza Hut team has been working hard to address business and category challenges," he said in a statement. "However, Pizza Hut's performance indicates the need to take additional action to help the brand realize its full value."
Yum Brands' shares rose nearly 7% following news of the review, with the company also reporting an 8% increase in third-quarter revenue thanks to strong sales at KFC and Taco Bell.
The decision comes as another 1950s-era dine-in icon, Denny's, has recently been sold to an investor group and taken private. Like Pizza Hut, Denny's has struggled with customers' shift to delivery and growing competition in casual dining options.
the pizza hut thing is kinda sad 
they had it all back in the day but now its just like any other chain trying to stay afloat 
and yeah i get that people wanna fast pickup and delivery but dont forget those large dine-in places arent exactly what customers want nowadays 
maybe its time for pizza hut to rebrand or something? 
like yum's doing well with kfc and taco bell but pizza hut needs to catch up... maybe selling it is the way to go? we'll see what happens 
that Yum Brands is having a midlife crisis and thinks selling off their most iconic brand might be the answer 
. I mean who wouldn't want to get rid of Pizza Hut when it's still got a 6,500 store empire? It's not like they've been coasting on nostalgia for decades or anything 
. Anyway, good luck with the sale, Yum Brands!
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. Selling the chain might be a good move, but it also means letting go of a brand that's been around for ages 
. I feel bad for the employees who'll lose their jobs, but at the same time, maybe this is an opportunity for Pizza Hut to reinvent itself in a way that makes more sense 
. Another classic American diner bit the dust. It's like we're losing all these pieces of our food culture history... what's next? 
. I mean, it's no surprise they're struggling with declining sales and revenue. It's been a slow decline for years and they just can't seem to catch up. They've got these huge dine-in restaurants that are basically dinosaurs at this point. Nobody wants to sit down for a meal when you can get pizza delivered in 30 minutes? 
The only good news is KFC and Taco Bell are killing it, but Pizza Hut's gotta do something or they'll be next. Maybe selling it off is the way to go? But it's not like that'll save them from the bigger problem... Denny's just got sold and they're struggling too 
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At least Denny's got the decency to get sold and taken private... this Pizza Hut review is just gonna end in a mess, mark my words. 
they need to find ways to modernize those dine-in places and cater to that pickup/delivery vibe, you know? but at the same time, yum brands has been doing alright with kfc and taco bell - maybe they're trying to spin off pizza hut as a separate entity just to focus on their stronger brands 