Yum! Brands 2024: 61,000+ Stores, 95% Franchised, Digital Over Half of Sales

This is an English adaptation of a FoodBud historical article originally published on February 7, 2025.

Yum! Brands' 2024 results show an asset-light, 95%-franchised system past 61,000 stores, with Taco Bell US the standout and digital now over half of sales.

Group 2024

• Revenue USD 7.549 billion (+6.7%); Q4 USD 2.362 billion (+16%). Operating profit USD 2.403 billion (+3.7%); net profit USD 1.486 billion (−6.9%) on tax effects.
• Stores grew from 58,155 to 61,436 (+3,281, +4%), 95% franchised. KFC 29,500→31,718 (+2,203, +7%, mostly international, esp. Middle East/APAC); Pizza Hut 19,859→19,823 (−36); Taco Bell 8,567→8,864 (+297, strong US); Habit Burger 366→378 (+11).
• Digital sales +15%, over 50% of sales; the Byte by Yum! platform is live in 25,000 stores. 2025 plan: roll Byte to five new markets and push AI personalization and omnichannel loyalty; target 70% KFC digital-kiosk coverage by 2026.

Brand reads (operator-relevant)

• Taco Bell (US): Q4 comps +5%, well above peers; full-year restaurant margin 24.3%, near record. Full-year system sales USD 17.19 billion (+8%); operating margin 36.7%.
• KFC: +7% units but full-year comps −2%; international recovering (Q4 international system sales +8%) while the US fell 5% system / −2% comps. China is KFC's largest market at 27% of system sales, the US 14%.
• Pizza Hut: full-year system sales −2% despite 1,280 openings (China, India, Saudi, Canada); US comps −5%. The US is its biggest market (42% of system sales), China 18%.
• Habit Burger: system sales +1%, store margin up to 10%.

Yum China (highlights)

Total revenue USD 11.3 billion (+3%, a post-spinoff high; +5% ex-FX); system sales +5% on 7% net-new-store contribution; restaurant margin 15.7%. Net 1,751 new stores to 16,395 total, with franchising rising (30% of KFC and 10% of Pizza Hut net-new). KCOFFEE sold 250 million cups (+30%), and KCOFFEE Café grew from ~50 (2023) to 700 stores (target 1,300 by end-2025); Pizza Hut WOW passed 200 stores. Delivery +14% (40%/39% of KFC/Pizza Hut company sales); digital sales USD 9.6 billion (90% of company sales); members over 525 million (+11%, 65% of system sales). For 2025, Yum China guided 1,600–1,800 new stores toward 20,000 by 2026, with franchise mix targeted at 40–50% (KFC) and 20–30% (Pizza Hut). Forward guidance is historical.