Yum! Brands sells Pizza Hut for $2.7 billion

Yum! Brands has agreed to sell Pizza Hut for $2.7 billion in aggregate, according to the company’s announcement . The deal is split in two: private equity firm LongRange Capital will buy Pizza Hut outside China for $1.5 billion, and Yum China Holdings will acquire the remainder for $1.2 billion. The transactions are expected to close in the third quarter, with Yum! projecting about $2.3 billion in net proceeds after taxes and fees.

The sale follows a long period of weakness for the chain, which has lost ground to rivals. Offloading Pizza Hut lets Yum! concentrate on its faster-growing KFC and Taco Bell brands, while handing the turnaround to owners — a financial buyer and Yum’s separately listed China arm — better positioned to focus on it.

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