Yum! Brands Inc Q4 2024 Earnings Call Summary

The following is excerpted from the question-and-answer section of the transcript.

Question: Dennis Geiger - UBS Equities - Analyst : Great. I wanted to ask a bit more about International and sort of the solid results and improvement that you saw through 4Q. If you could touch to some extent on the health of International franchisees, perhaps how that impacts your growth trajectory expected through '25? And maybe just any kind of characterization of international conditions, the markets you're in, are they improving? Is it stabilization and you're just kind of taking share? Any commentary on that would be helpful.

Question: Brian Bittner - Oppenheimer & Co., Inc. - Analyst : You talked about 2025 being an on-algorithm year for core operating profit growth of at least 8% and you also mentioned or hinted that unit growth may be a bit below the 5% algorithm because of the Turkey closings in 1Q. So just curious, how are you modeling the makeup of that small gap? Do you anticipate same-store sales to be a bit above the algorithm, maybe as KFC International recovers? It seems like G&A based on your commentary is not going to be a big tailwind like it was in 2024. So just any additional details on the 2025 algo that you are willing to give would be appreciated.

Question: David Tarantino - Robert W. Baird & Co., Inc. - Analyst : My question is on your G&A outlook longer term, Chris. I was hoping maybe you could frame up where you think that could go as a percent of system sales now that you -- I think you mentioned bending the arc on some of the impact from the tech investments? So should we expect that to move lower over time or I guess, any way to frame that up would be helpful. REFINITIV STREETEVENTS | www.refinitiv.com | Contact Us consent of Refinitiv. 'Refinitiv' and the Refinitiv logo are registered trademarks of Refinitiv and its affiliated companies. FEBRUARY 06, 2025 / 1:15PM, YUM.N - Q4 2024 Yum! Brands Inc Earnings Call

Question: Gregory Francfort - Guggenheim Securities LLC - Analyst : My question is just maybe going back to what you want Scott to do with the KFC US business and how you envision him maybe making his stamp in improvements there. Is this a new product, a new cycle kind of calendar? Is it asset upgrades? Is it kind of a bolder rethink of the box and the format? Just any thoughts on what he can do and what you're envisioning that sort of improvement to look like?

Question: David Palmer - Evercore ISI - Analyst : And agree on those comments on Scott, congrats to him on that promotion. I wanted to ask one about the technology stuff in Byte. I think Yum! Brands is a little different than fast food franchise or peers in the level of vertical and internal build-out of tech capabilities. And obviously, it's going to -- it might be different in terms of tech fees for the service. So maybe I'm wrong in drawing that distinction between Yum! and the peer group. But it's obviously a different strategy for the company, and it's one that's exciting going forward. Could you just talk a bit about the arguments for and against this type of thing for the franchisees versus an outsourced model? And then what Byte can do for you in your profit growth in '25 and long term?

Question: Brian Harbour - Morgan Stanley - Analyst : I wanted to ask about that topic, too. Is is sort of brand under one umbrella, are you suggesting that there's a pretty significant acceleration in rollout of that this year. Have you sort of accounted for the net impact of that in the guidance that you provided? And I guess you point to Taco Bell US, which is doing very well. Is there any other kind of like illustration in the other brands that you can point to for this is where these technologies are really driving sales or if you sort of separate out some of the markets, have you seen that visible impact?

Question: John Ivankoe - JPMorgan - Analyst : The question is on the unique challenges and opportunities you may have of attracting, retaining technologists, best-in-class leading edge technologists and Byte with Yum! Obviously, being a restaurant analyst we haven't quite through the gold rush of people searching for AI talent and what have you, but it does certainly appear that that's ongoing in many different companies around the US and around the world. So talk about maybe something special or unique you can do to attract and retain the best not just kind of today, but as this technology and the demand for talent evolves?