Yum! Brands announces strategic review for Pizza Hut, KFC UK system sales up 10% in third quarter and 6% year to date: Yum! Brands has announced a formal review of strategic options for the Pizza Hut brand. Yum! Brands said the review will explore a range of strategic options while Pizza Hut continues to focus on near-term business imperatives. “Pizza Hut is a beloved global brand and industry innovator that connects people through the joy of pizza, and we are confident in its long-term future,” said Yum! Brands chief executive Chris Turner. “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. The Pizza Hut team has been working hard to address business and category challenges; however, Pizza Hut’s performance indicates the need to take additional action to help the brand realise its full value, which may be better executed outside of Yum! Brands. To truly take advantage of the brand we’ve built and the opportunities ahead, we’ve made the decision to initiate a thorough review of strategic options.” Yum! Brands said it has not set a deadline or definitive timetable for the completion of the strategic options review, and there can be no assurance this review will result in any specific outcome or transaction. The company said it does not intend to comment or make further announcements unless it determines that further disclosure is appropriate or necessary. Yum! Brands has retained Goldman Sachs and Barclays as financial advisers for the strategic review. The review comes as Yum! Brands reported Pizza Hut system sales in Europe, including the UK, were down 1% for the third quarter ended 30 September 2025 compared with the previous year. The continent accounts for 11% of Pizza Hut’s system sales globally. Year-to-date sales are down 2% in the region. Globally, Pizza Hut system sales in the quarter were flat at $3,177m, while like-for-likes fell 1%. US system sales, which account for 42% of global sales, were down 7%. Operating margin fell 3.2% while operating profit dropped 8% to $84m. Pizza Hut opened 289 gross new restaurants in 31 countries during the period. Propel reported earlier today (Tuesday, 4 November) that Yum! Europe paid circa £3.7m to acquire Pizza Hut’s UK dine-in operations. An administrator report revealed FTI was appointed as administrators on 20 October of DC London Pie, the company formed a year ago to run Pizza Hut UK by US firm Directional Capital following the collapse of former franchisee Heart With Smart. Immediately following the appointment of FTI, the administrators completed a deal that saw 79 restaurants close and 64 safeguarded, with approximately 1,254 team members transferred to Yum! Brands. A notice of administrators’ proposals showed Yum! Europe paid circa £3.7m for a deal that included 36 leasehold premises, while a separate agreement was reached with Heart With Smart for a further 28 premises where the leases had not yet been assigned to DC London Pie. Meanwhile, Yum! Brands reported KFC system sales in the UK were up 10% in the third quarter compared with the previous year. In the year to date, KFC UK system sales have increased 6%. The UK accounts for 6% of KFC’s system sales worldwide. Globally, KFC like-for-like sales in the quarter grew 3%, with US like-for-like sales up 2%. System sales worldwide were up 8% to $9,340m and operating margin was up 1.5%. KFC opened 760 gross new restaurants in 36 countries during the period. Operating profit was up 16% to $392m. Taco Bell like-for-like sales increased 7% and system sales were up 9% to $4,368m. In its international division, like-for-likes were up 6% and system sales grew 12%. In the year to date, Taco Bell like-for-likes have grown 7% and system sales are up 9% to $12,623m. Operating profit in the third quarter increased 7% to $267m and operating margin was down 1%.  Taco Bell opened 74 gross new restaurants in 14 countries during the period. Yum! Brands’ revenue was up 8% in the quarter to $1,979m compared with $1,826m the previous year. In the year to date, revenue was up 10% to $5,699 compared with $5,187m the year before. Propel has broken new ground by launching the Propel Franchisor Showcase, which will put the spotlight on ten up-and-coming food and beverage franchisors. The Propel Franchisor Showcase, sponsored by Seeds Consulting, will be held on Tuesday, 25 November at One Moorgate Place in London and is open for bookings. The franchisors presenting are: Lucky Voice, Paris Baguette UK, Plan Burrito, Urban Baristas, SpudBros Express, Japes, Wenzel’s, Fat Phill’s, Zocalo and West Cornwall Pasty. Propel founder Paul Charity said: “This really important and fast-emerging part of the UK food and beverage landscape deserves a bigger stage. For that reason, Propel is proud to present this showcase. This is a unique chance to explore exciting franchise opportunities.” For the full speaker schedule, click here. Free places for operators and investors only are available by emailing kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com.