Struggling Pizza Hut restaurant chain sold for $2.7 billion

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Pizza Hut is getting a new home.Yum Brands, based in Louisville, Ky., announced Tuesday that it sold the struggling pizza chain in two separate sales totaling $2.7 billion.LongRange Capital, a private equity firm based in Stamford, Conn., acquired Pizza Hut’s U.S.operation for $1.5 billion, Yum Brands said in a statement.The company’s mainland China business was separately purchased by Yum China Holdings Inc.

for $1.2 billion, the statement said.The sale includes nearly 20,000 Pizza Hut restaurants, including 6,400 in the U.S.and is expected to close in the third quarter.Yum Brands first indicated a possible sale of the chain in November 2025, saying in a statement it would be reviewing strategic options following a decline in sales from the previous year.

In February, it announced the closure of 250 Pizza Hut locations in the U.S.Business Pizza Hut to close hundreds of locations around the U.S.“Under LongRange and Yum China, Pizza Hut will be well positioned for future growth with ownership that brings deep expertise in the restaurant industry,” said Yum Brands CEO Chris Turner in Tuesday’s statement.

“Pizza Hut is one of the most iconic restaurant brands in the world, and we are proud of the important role it has played in Yum!’s history.”Pizza Hut first opened in Wichita, Kansas in 1958 and rapidly expanded before being sold to PepsiCO in 1977.Twenty years later, PepsiCo spun-off Pizza Hut, KFC and Taco Bell to Yum Brands.

Taco Bell was founded in Downey, Calif., in 1962.In April, Yum Brands reported a first quarter net income of $432 million, up from $253 million a year earlier, boosted by strong sales from Taco Bell and KFC.Pizza Hut saw no change in same-store sales.

Yum Brands’ total revenue in the first quarter was $2.06 billion.As third party delivery services such as DoorDash grew in popularity, Pizza Hut fell behind without the advantage of...