12:30 PM EST, 11/04/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Yum Brands ( YUM ) said Tuesday that it began exploring strategic options for its Pizza Hut brand, which continued to struggle amid falling comparable sales in the third quarter.

The options include a potential sale of Pizza Hut as Yum Brands ( YUM ) seeks to maximize value for its shareholders, recently-appointed Chief Executive Chris Turner told analysts during the company's earnings call, according to a FactSet transcript.

Pizza Hut's US same-store sales declined 6% in the third quarter, while its global comparable sales dropped 1%.

"The Pizza Hut team has been working hard to address business and category challenges; however, Pizza Hut's performance indicates the need to take additional action to help the brand realize its full value, which may be better executed outside of Yum Brands ( YUM )," Turner said in a statement. "To truly take advantage of the brand we've built and the opportunities ahead, we've made the decision to initiate a thorough review of strategic options."

Yum Brands' ( YUM ) stock was up 7% intraday Tuesday, boosting its year-to-date gains to 11%.

No deadline has been set to complete the review, which may still not lead to a specific outcome, the company said.

"Pizza Hut holds key structural advantages, strong brand equity, experienced franchise partners and meaningful scale, which give it a unique opportunity to reclaim the leading position in the highly fragmented pizza market," Turner, who stepped into the CEO role last month, said on the call.

"We believe a different approach, including, but not limited to, a sale of the business would allow Pizza Hut to realize its full potential," Turner added.

For the third quarter, Yum Brands ( YUM ) adjusted per-share earnings rose to $1.58 from $1.37 a year earlier and exceeded the FactSet-polled consensus of $1.49. Revenue grew 8% to $1.98 billion, while analysts expected $2 billion.

Worldwide same-store sales rose 3%, ahead of analysts' growth estimate of 2.5%, with KFC ( YUM ) and Taco Bell logging gains of 3% and 7%, respectively.

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