Pizza Hut Sold!

Global retail holding company Yum! Brands, which owns KFC and Taco Bell, has announced the sale of the global Pizza Hut restaurant chain to private investment firm LongRange Capital in a transaction valued at approximately US1.5billion, equivalenttoRp26.62trillion(assuminganexchangerateofRp17, 746perUS). The deal does not include Pizza Hut outlets in mainland China. The business in that country will be acquired by Yum China in a separate transaction worth approximately US$1.2 billion, or around Rp21.29 trillion.

The move marks the end of Yum’s years-long effort to improve Pizza Hut’s performance, which was deemed a drag on the group’s overall financial results. In the United States, Pizza Hut shifted from a dine-in restaurant and salad bar concept to delivery and takeaway services, but was considered late compared to its competitors. Over the years, Pizza Hut’s market share has been steadily eroded by rival Domino’s Pizza. Additionally, the presence of third-party delivery platforms such as DoorDash has further pressured the pizza chain’s sales.

Yum previously announced last November that it was evaluating various strategic options for Pizza Hut. Management and the board of directors subsequently concluded that selling the business was the best step to maximise shareholder value while providing an ownership structure more suited to Pizza Hut’s market characteristics and long-term strategy. From the two transactions, Yum expects to receive net proceeds of approximately US$2.3 billion, or around Rp37.5 trillion, after taxes, transaction adjustments, and various other costs. This figure excludes a potential additional earnout payment of up to US$75 million that could be received from LongRange Capital before 2030.

On the other hand, Yum expects to record a one-time charge of approximately US$85 million throughout the remainder of 2026 related to the transaction process. The company plans to present a more detailed financial impact during its second-quarter 2026 performance conference on 30 July. The Pizza Hut sale transaction is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2026 after obtaining regulatory approvals. The news was welcomed positively by investors, with Yum shares strengthening nearly 2% in local trading on Tuesday.

Pizza Hut was founded by brothers Dan Carney and Frank Carney in Wichita, Kansas, in 1958. A year later, the business concept began to be franchised and expanded rapidly to various regions. The company went public in 1969 and within just two years became the world’s largest pizza chain. However, that position was eventually seized by Domino’s in 2017 after decades of dominating the global market. This sale also ends Pizza Hut’s long relationship with KFC and Taco Bell, which have been under one business group for several decades. Initially, PepsiCo acquired Pizza Hut in 1977 as an entry point into the restaurant business before later purchasing Taco Bell and KFC. In 1997, PepsiCo spun off its restaurant business unit into a separate company named Tricon Global Restaurants, which later changed its name to Yum! Brands. Since then, Pizza Hut, KFC, and Taco Bell have grown under one corporate umbrella until the sale decision announced this year. Based on regulatory documents, as of the end of 2025, Pizza Hut operated nearly 20,000 outlets across 108 countries and territories. The chain recorded annual system sales of US$12.8 billion, with the United States as the largest market contributing approximately 40% of sales, followed by China with a contribution of around 20%.