Fast-food giant Yum Brands tops expectations, led by strength in Taco Bell

Yum Brands on Wednesday reported quarterly earnings and revenue that topped analysts’ expectations, fueled by strong same-store sales growth at Taco Bell.

Shares of the company rose less than 1% in premarket trading.

Here’s what the company reported compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by Refinitiv:

• Earnings per share: $1.31 adjusted vs. $1.26 expected
• Revenue: $2.02 billion vs. $1.92 billion expected

Yum reported fourth-quarter net income of $371 million, or $1.29 per share, up from $330 million, or $1.11 per share, a year earlier.

Excluding expenses tied to its decision to exit Russia and other items, the company earned $1.31 cents per share.

Net sales rose 7% to $2.02 billion. The company’s global same-store sales increased 6% in the quarter, driven by diners’ strong appetite for Taco Bell.

Taco Bell, which is typically the strongest performer in Yum’s portfolio, reported same-store sales growth of 11%, beating StreetAccount estimates of 6.7%. Most of the Mexican-inspired chain’s locations are in the U.S., although it’s been expanding internationally in recent years.

KFC fell short of Wall Street’s expectations as weak performance in China weighed on its results. The fried chicken chain reported same-store sales growth of 5%, just shy of estimates of 5.4%. Excluding China, its largest market, KFC’s same-store sales increased 9%. After the Chinese government relaxed its zero Covid policy, a wave of new outbreaks hit the country.

Weak sales in China also hurt Pizza Hut’s fourth-quarter performance. The pizza chain’s global same-store sales ticked up 1%, but its international same-store sales fell by 1%. Pizza Hut’s U.S. same-store sales rose 4%, a sign that consumers have recovered from last year’s pizza fatigue after over-ordering pies during Covid lockdowns.

Read the full Yum Brands earnings report here.