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<a href="https://www.yum.com/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=yum-brands-earnings-call-reveals-how-restaurants-are-recovering-from-covid-19-2714922" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">YUM! Brands</a>, the massive fast food corporation that operates <a href="https://www.tacobellfranchise.com/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=yum-brands-earnings-call-reveals-how-restaurants-are-recovering-from-covid-19-2714922" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Taco Bell</a>, <a href="https://www.kfc.com/franchise-a-kfc?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=yum-brands-earnings-call-reveals-how-restaurants-are-recovering-from-covid-19-2714922" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">KFC</a>, <a href="https://franchise.pizzahut.com/faqs/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=yum-brands-earnings-call-reveals-how-restaurants-are-recovering-from-covid-19-2714922" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Pizza Hut</a> and others, reported its 2020 Q4 earnings on Thursday, giving a snapshot of how the restaurant industry is still recovering from COVID-19.&nbsp;Overall, <a href="https://www.fool.com/earnings/call-transcripts/2021/02/04/yum-brands-inc-yum-q4-2020-earnings-call-transcrip/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=yum-brands-earnings-call-reveals-how-restaurants-are-recovering-from-covid-19-2714922" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">YUM! beat expectations</a> on earnings and revenue, reporting adjusted earnings per share of $1.15, instead of the $.99 expected and $1.74 billion in revenue instead of the $1.72 billion expected. As of 2 p.m. EST on Thursday, the company’s stock was down just under 1%.&nbsp;Of the company’s major brands, only Taco Bell posted positive same-store sales growth in the quarter. <a href="https://www.yum.com/wps/portal/yumbrands/Yumbrands/company/about-yum-brands/senior-officers-and-leadership-team/david-gibbs?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=yum-brands-earnings-call-reveals-how-restaurants-are-recovering-from-covid-19-2714922" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">David Gibbs</a>, the company’s CEO, attributed this to expanding the brand’s delivery presence, a loyalty program and bringing back old menu favorites.&nbsp;“Taco Bell U.S. stayed focused on simultaneously building the brand over time and building sales overnight,” said <a href="https://www.fool.com/earnings/call-transcripts/2021/02/04/yum-brands-inc-yum-q4-2020-earnings-call-transcrip/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=yum-brands-earnings-call-reveals-how-restaurants-are-recovering-from-covid-19-2714922" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Gibbs on the call</a>.&nbsp;Taco Bell’s placement on third-party delivery apps “helped delivery grow to a high-single-digit sales mix for the quarter,” said Gibbs.&nbsp;Pizza Hut, on the other hand, saw a 1% same-store sales drop as its stores in the U.S. perked up 8%, but international same-store sales dropped 7%.“20% of the Pizza Hut stores were in the hands of a poorly capitalized operator previously,” said Gibbs, referring to NPC International, which <a href="https://1851franchise.com/npc-international-sells-1150-pizza-hut-wendys-locations-to-flynn-restaurant-group-following-bankruptcy-2714680">sold 950 Pizza Hut stores to Flynn Restaurant Group</a>. “We expect Flynn's ownership of these restaurants will make the entire Pizza Hut U.S. system stronger, and welcome Greg Flynn and his team to the Pizza Hut family. The near-term plans include modernization of a significant portion of the restaurants acquired, while improving operations.”<h4>Key Takeaways</h4>YUM!’s Q4 performance shows that even massive brands with established delivery operations like Pizza Hut still rely on third party delivery apps, and for Taco Bell, a big brand without a big delivery operation, these apps have been a key driver of sales growth.&nbsp;Additionally, while recovery seems to be keeping a slow but steady pace, the pandemic has highlighted issues that existed in the industry long before quarantines or lockdowns.&nbsp;<a href="https://1851franchise.com/franchise-investment-diversify-or-stick-with-one-brand-2714820#editorials">Fast food</a> and <a href="https://1851franchise.com/covid-19-vaccine-what-it-means-for-the-pizza-and-fast-food-boom-2714504">pizza have seen a sales boom</a> since the pandemic, but it appears Pizza Hut and Taco Bell may have missed out due to undercapitalized stores.&nbsp;YUM!’s earnings report shows the industry’s shift to loyalty apps, off-premise dining and collaboration with third-party delivery apps is real, and brands big and small are wise to pay attention.

YUM! Brands' Earnings Call Reveals How Restaurants Are Recovering from COVID-19

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The franchising giant held an earnings call on Thursday, proving the restaurant industry is slowly bouncing back from the COVID-19 crash.

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