Fcusing on international growth, Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM - News) has placed its Long John Silver's and A&W All-American Food Restaurants for sale. The company has also begun the process to identify a buyer.
Yum! is sharpening its long-term growth focus on building leading brands in every significant category in China, driving aggressive international expansion, and improving its U.S. brand positions by building new dayparts and sales layers at Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and KFC, according to a company release. But the company does not feel Long John Silver's and A&W fit into its long-term growth strategy, said David C. Novak, Yum! Brands, Inc. chairman and chief executive officer in a company release.
In 1998, when Yum! Brands was spun-off from PepsiCo, 22 percent of its profits were sourced internationally, according to a company release. Today, about 65 percent of the company's profits are from the China and Yum! Restaurants International divisions, and the company expects that percentage to grow to 75 percent by 2015.
In the U.S., Taco Bell accounts for approximately 60 percent of the Company's profits, followed by Pizza Hut and KFC. The Long John Silver's and A&W All-American Foods Brands account for a total of 1,630 restaurants, all of which are owned and operated by franchisees, according to a company release.
