Private Equity Eyes Another Major Restaurant Brand as Pizza Hut Sale Advances

Yum! Brands is reportedly in exclusive negotiations to sell Pizza Hut to private equity firm LongRange Capital, according to Bloomberg. LongRange recently secured exclusivity after outbidding other interested parties, including Sycamore Partners, and the two sides are now working toward a potential deal that could be finalized in the coming weeks. However, no agreement has been completed yet, and all parties declined to comment publicly.

Yum put Pizza Hut under strategic review in 2025. The move followed a period in which the pizza chain’s place in the company changed. Pizza Hut remains one of the world’s largest pizza brands, but its share of Yum’s revenue fell from more than 18% in 2019 to about 12% in 2025. Its annual revenue stayed a little above $1 billion over that span. Yum’s total revenue, meanwhile, rose nearly 50% to $8.2 billion, with more of that growth coming from Taco Bell and KFC.

LongRange Capital, founded in 2019 by former Baupost Group executive Bob Berlin, has experience investing in consumer-facing businesses and currently owns companies including 24 Hour Fitness. The firm was one of several bidders reportedly interested in Pizza Hut.

If completed, the transaction would represent one of the most significant strategic moves in Yum's recent history. It would signal the company's desire to focus resources on its faster-growing brands and franchise operations while potentially giving Pizza Hut a dedicated owner focused solely on revitalizing the chain. For the franchising industry, the deal would be another example of private equity's growing interest in large restaurant brands and the ongoing consolidation reshaping the sector.

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