A Pizza Hut store is seen on November 01, 2023 in Austin, Texas.
Brandon Bell | Getty Images
Yum Brands on Wednesday reported quarterly earnings and revenue that missed analysts’ expectations as Pizza Hut and KFC struggled to attract customers.
Shares of the company fell 3% in premarket trading.
Here’s what the company reported compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:
- Earnings per share: $1.15 adjusted vs. $1.20 expected
- Revenue: $1.6 billion vs. $1.71 billion expected
Yum reported first-quarter net income of $314 million, or $1.10 per share, up from $300 million, or $1.05 per share, a year earlier.
Excluding investment losses and other items, the company earned $1.15 per share.
Net sales dropped 3% to $1.6 billion. Yum’s global same-store sales also fell 3% in the quarter, missing StreetAccount estimates of 0.2% same-store sales growth.
Across Yum’s three largest brands, only Taco Bell reported same-store sales growth. The metric rose 1% during the quarter at the Mexican-inspired chain. Taco Bell’s U.S. locations reported same-store sales growth of 2%, while its international business posted a decline of 2%.
KFC’s same-store sales fell 2% in the quarter. The bigger decline came in the U.S., where they shrank 7%. However, the chicken chain’s international division saw same-store sales decrease just 2%, thanks to growth in China, its largest market.
Pizza Hut reported same-store sales dropped 7%, as demand lagged both in its home market and internationally. The pizza chain’s U.S. restaurants reported a decrease of 6%, while its international division posted an 8% decline.
The company’s digital business was one of the few bright spots this quarter. Yum said its digital sales accounted for more than 50% of sales for the first time.
Yum’s global footprint grew 6% in the quarter, thanks to 808 new restaurant openings.