Q1 2026 Yum China Holdings Inc Earnings Call Transcript
Key Points
- Yum China Holdings Inc (YUMC) reported a 10% revenue growth in the first quarter of 2026, with operating profit increasing by 6% excluding foreign exchange impacts.
- The company opened 636 net new stores, achieving more than one-third of its full-year target ahead of schedule.
- KFC's same-store sales grew for the fourth consecutive quarter, with system sales increasing by 5% and maintaining healthy restaurant margins at 19.1%.
- Pizza Hut delivered an 18% operating profit growth, with same-store transactions growing for the 13th consecutive quarter and restaurant margins improving by 60 basis points year over year.
- Yum China Holdings Inc (YUMC) is on track to reach 20,000 stores by the end of 2026, with franchisees contributing significantly to new store openings.
- Same-store sales growth was slightly positive but rounded to zero, indicating challenges in achieving significant growth in existing locations.
- The company faced increased rider costs due to a higher delivery mix, impacting restaurant margins by 190 basis points.
- Cost of sales increased by 40 basis points year over year, driven by strong value-for-money offerings and higher delivery-related packaging costs.
- Pizza Hut's ticket average decreased by 5% year over year, reflecting challenges in maintaining pricing power amidst a mass-market strategy.
- The company anticipates continued pressure from rider costs due to the growing delivery sales mix, which could impact margins in the near term.
Good day, and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Yum China first-quarter 2026 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions)
Please be advised today's conference is being recorded. I'd now like to hand the conference over to your first speaker today, Senior IR Director, Florence Lip. Please go ahead.
Thank you, operator. Hello, everyone, and welcome to Yum China's first-quarter 2026 earnings conference call. With me on the call are our CEO, Ms. Joey Wat; and our CFO, Mr. Adrian Ding.
Before we begin, I will remind everyone that our remarks and investor materials contain forward-looking statements. These are subject to future events and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially. Please refer to these forward-looking statements, together with the cautionary statement in our earnings release and the risk factors included in our SEC filings.
We'll also be talking about non-GAAP financial measures. We encourage you to review the
| Access to All Earning Calls and Stock Analysis | |
| 30-Year Financial on one screen | |
| All-in-one Stock Screener with unlimited filters | |
| Customizable Stock Dashboard | |
| Real Time Insider Trading Transactions | |
| 8,000+ Institutional investors’ 13F holdings | |
| Powerful Excel Add-in and Google sheets Add-on | |
| All data downloadable | |
| Quick customer support | |
| And much more... |
Trustpilot
We'd love to learn more about your experiences on GuruFocus.com and how we can improve!
Take Survey
