LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Yum! Brands is considering the future of its iconic Pizza Hut brand, which could soon be up for sale.
In a news release Tuesday, the Louisville-based fast food giant said it initiated a formal review of strategic options for the brand. This announcement doesn't mean Pizza Hut is for sale but it does mean the company is exploring options.
Yum! Brands CEO Chris Turner said the company is confident in the future of the brand.
"Pizza Hut has many strengths — including deep consumer love, a global footprint, strong growth in many markets, a talented team, and an increasingly powerful technology platform," Turner said.
But he added that Pizza Hut is facing industry challenges.
"Pizza Hut’s performance indicates the need to take additional action to help the brand realize its full value, which may be better executed outside of Yum! Brands," he said.
Pizza Hut has nearly 20,000 stores in more than 100 countries, and its international sales were up 2% in the first nine months of this year. China is its second-largest market outside the U.S.
But Pizza Hut gets nearly half its sales from the U.S., where it has around 6,500 stores, and U.S. sales fell 7% in the same period. Pizza Hut was long saddled with large, outdated dine-in restaurants at a time when consumers wanted fast pickup and delivery. In 2020, one of Pizza Hut's largest franchisees filed for bankruptcy protection and closed 300 stores.
Yum! Brands said there is no deadline or timetable to finish the strategic options review, and the company said there is no guarantee the review will bring a specific outcome. The company said it won't comment further.
The company has retained Goldman Sachs and Barclays as financial advisers for the review.
According to the release, Yum! Brands operates 62,000 restaurants in 155 countries. Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, KFC and Habit Burger & Grill are among the brands it owns.
Yum! Brands announced Oct. 31 that it had signed a 10-year lease in the PNC Tower in downtown Louisville, using four and a half floors of the building. The company is moving from its long-time headquarters off Gardiner Lane, property that's since been donated to Jefferson County Public Schools.
The restaurant giant also announced in February it's moving around 100 corporate jobs in Louisville to the company's office in Plano, Texas, combining the KFC Louisville headquarters with Pizza Hut's headquarters.
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