Pizza Hut is set to close 250 underperforming locations across the United States as its parent company, Yum! Brands, continues a strategic review of the struggling pizza chain. The announcement was made during Yum!'s fourth-quarter 2025 earnings call on Wednesday, with closures expected to take place in the first half of 2026.
The affected stores represent approximately 3 percent of Pizza Hut's US footprint, which totals around 6,500 outlets. Yum! Brands, which also owns Taco Bell and KFC, did not specify which locations would close. The company's CFO, Ranjith Roy, stated that the closures would target underperforming sites.
In November, Yum! CEO Chris Turner revealed that the company had launched a formal review of strategic options for Pizza Hut, including a potential sale. During Wednesday's call, executives declined to discuss the ongoing review, which is expected to be completed this year.
Pizza Hut has faced increasing competition from rivals like Domino's Pizza, while other Yum! brands such as Taco Bell have attracted customers with new menu items. The chain reported a 3 percent decline in US same-store sales for the fourth quarter and a 5 percent drop for the full year.
This is not the first time Pizza Hut has undergone significant store closures. In 2020, one of its largest franchisees filed for bankruptcy and shut down 300 locations. Despite having nearly 20,000 stores globally, the US market accounts for almost half of its sales.
