Yum! brands reports fourth-quarter gaap operating profit growth of
134%; fourth-quarter core operating profit decline of (6)%; on track
with strategic transformation to accelerate growth
Louisville, ky.--(business wire)--yum! brands, inc. (nyse: yum) today reported results for the fourth quarter ended december 31, 2017. fourth-quarter gaap eps was $1.26, an increase of 53%. full-year gaap eps was $3.77, an increase of 48%. fourth-quarter eps excluding special items was $0.96, an increase of 20%. full-year eps excluding special items was $2.96, an increase of 20%. greg creed & david gibbs comments greg creed, ceo, said “as we close the first full year of our transformation, i am very proud of the progress we are making towards becoming a more focused, more franchised and more efficient company that generates more growth. during 2017, system sales grew a healthy 5% excluding the impact of lapping the 53rd week in 2016, with same-store sales growth of 2% and net new unit growth of 3%. as we move forward into 2018, we are particularly excited about our investment in ‘easy’ with our new partnership with grubhub. we are confident that the continued focus on our four key growth drivers supports our vision for a ‘world with more yum!’ and maximizes the creation of value for all yum! stakeholders.” david gibbs, president and cfo, continued “the fourth quarter was a solid ending to a year where yum! brands met or exceeded each component of our full-year guidance. despite headwinds from refranchising dilution and lapping a 53rd week, we delivered full-year core operating profit growth of 7%. we are on track with our strategic transformation to accelerate growth and made significant progress towards achieving these objectives in 2017. we look forward to updating you as we continue on our journey to build the world’s most loved, trusted and fastest-growing restaurant brands.” summary financial table fourth-quarter highlights we refranchised 896 restaurants, including 685 kfc, 144 pizza hut and 67 taco bell units, for pre-tax proceeds of $1.1 billion. we recorded net refranchising gains of $752 million in special items. as of quarter end, our global franchise ownership mix increased to 97%. same-storesales gaapoperating profit coreoperating profit full-year highlights same-storesales gaapoperating profit coreoperating profit kfc division fourthquarter fourthquarter fourthquarter +4 +3 percent of kfcsystem sales2 1refer to www.yum.com/investors/financial-information/financial-reports for a list of the countries within each of the markets. pizza hut division fourthquarter fourthquarter fourthquarter percent of pizza hutsystem sales3 1pizza hut u.k. and pizza hut australia, both of which are international developed markets, transitioned from a periodic weekly calendar to a monthly calendar beginning in the first quarter of 2017. as a result, system sales growth for both markets was negatively impacted in the fourth quarter due to q4 2017 results having approximately 13 weeks compared to q4 2016 results having 17 weeks, including a 53rd week. there was not a significant impact from this calendar change on full-year system sales growth for either market. 2refer to www.yum.com/investors/financial-information/financial-reports for a list of the countries within each of the markets. taco bell division other items conference call yum! brands, inc. will host a conference call to review the company's financial performance and strategies at 8:15 a.m. eastern time thursday, february 8, 2018. the number is 877/815-2029 for u.s. callers and 706/645-9271 for international callers, conference id 4894878. the call will be available for playback beginning at 11:15 a.m. eastern time thursday, february 8, 2018 through thursday, march 15, 2018. to access the playback, dial 855/859-2056 in the u.s. and 404/537-3406 internationally, conference id 4894878. the webcast and playback can be accessed via the internet by visiting yum! brands' website, www.yum.com/investors/events-presentations and selecting “q4 2017 earnings conference call.” additional information online quarter end dates for each division, restaurant count details, definitions of terms and restricted group financial information are available at www.yum.com/investors. reconciliation of non-gaap financial measures to the most directly comparable gaap results are included within this release. forward-looking statements this announcement may contain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of section 27a of the securities act of 1933 and section 21e of the securities exchange act of 1934. we intend all forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe harbor provisions of the private securities litigation reform act of 1995. forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the fact that they do not relate strictly to historical or current facts and by the use of forward-looking words such as “expect,” “expectation,” “believe,” “anticipate,” “may,” “could,” “intend,” “belief,” “plan,” “estimate,” “target,” “predict,” “likely,” “seek,” “project,” “model,” “ongoing,” “will,” “should,” “forecast,” “outlook” or similar terminology. these statements are based on and reflect our current expectations, estimates, assumptions and/ or projections, our perception of historical trends and current conditions, as well as other factors that we believe are appropriate and reasonable under the circumstances. forward-looking statements are neither predictions nor guarantees of future events, circumstances or performance and are inherently subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those indicated by those statements. there can be no assurance that our expectations, estimates, assumptions and/or projections, including with respect to the future earnings and performance or capital structure of yum! brands, will prove to be correct or that any of our expectations, estimates or projections will be achieved. numerous factors could cause our actual results and events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: food safety and food borne-illness issues; health concerns arising from outbreaks of viruses or other diseases; the success of our franchisees and licensees, and the success of our refranchising strategy generally; changes in economic and political conditions in countries and territories outside of the u.s. where we operate; our ability to protect the integrity and security of individually identifiable data of our customers and employees; our increasing dependence on digital commerce platforms and information technology systems; the impact of social media; our ability to secure and maintain distribution and adequate supply to our restaurants; the success of our development strategy in emerging markets; changes in commodity, labor and other operating costs; pending or future litigation and legal claims or proceedings; changes in or noncompliance with government regulations, including labor standards and anti-bribery or anti-corruption laws; recent tax legislation (defined below) and other tax matters, including disagreements with taxing authorities; consumer preferences and perceptions of our brands; changes in consumer discretionary spending and general economic conditions; competition within the retail food industry; and risks relating to our significant amount of indebtedness. in addition, other risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or that we currently believe to be immaterial could affect the accuracy of any such forward-looking statements. all forward-looking statements should be evaluated with the understanding of their inherent uncertainty. information regarding the impact of the tax cuts and jobs act of 2017 (“tax legislation”) consists of preliminary estimates which are forward-looking statements and are subject to change, possibly materially, as the company completes its financial statements. information regarding the impact of tax legislation is based on our current calculations, as well our current interpretations, assumptions and expectations relating to tax legislation, which are subject to further change. the forward-looking statements included in this announcement are only made as of the date of this announcement and we disclaim any obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement to reflect subsequent events or circumstances. you should consult our filings with the securities and exchange commission (including the information set forth under the captions “risk factors” and “forward-looking statements” in our most recently filed annual report on form 10-k and quarterly report on form 10-q) for additional detail about factors that could affect our financial and other results. yum! brands, inc., based in louisville, kentucky, has over 45,000 restaurants in more than 135 countries and territories and is one of the aon hewitt top companies for leaders in north america. in 2018, yum! brands was recognized as part of the inaugural bloomberg gender-equality index. in 2017, yum! brands was named to the dow jones sustainability north america index and ranked among the top 100 best corporate citizens by corporate responsibility magazine. the company’s restaurant brands - kfc, pizza hut and taco bell - are global leaders of the chicken, pizza and mexican-style food categories. worldwide, the yum! brands system opens over seven new restaurants per day on average, making it a leader in global retail development. yum! brands, inc. consolidated summary of results (amounts in millions, except per share amounts) (unaudited) 12/31/16(as restated) % changeb/(w) 12/31/16(as restated) % changeb/(w) 193 effective tax rate from continuing operations basic eps from continuing operations diluted eps from continuing operations basic eps from discontinued operations diluted eps from discontinued operations see accompanying notes.percentages may not recompute due to rounding. yum! brands, inc. kfc division operating results (amounts in millions) (unaudited) 12/31/16(as restated) % changeb/(w) 12/31/16(as restated) % changeb/(w) see accompanying notes.percentages may not recompute due to rounding. yum! brands, inc. pizza hut division operating results (amounts in millions) (unaudited) 12/31/16(as restated) % changeb/(w) 12/31/16(as restated) % changeb/(w) see accompanying notes.percentages may not recompute due to rounding. yum! brands, inc. taco bell division operating results (amounts in millions) (unaudited) (as restated) % changeb/(w) (as restated) % changeb/(w) see accompanying notes.percentages may not recompute due to rounding. yum! brands, inc. consolidated balance sheets (amounts in millions) (unaudited) 12/31/16(as restated) property, plant and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation and amortization of $1,480 in 2017 and $1,995 in 2016 see accompanying notes. yum! brands, inc. consolidated statements of cash flows (amounts in millions) (unaudited) 12/31/16(as restated) net cash provided by (used in) financing activities from continuing operations net increase in cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents - continuing operations cash provided by operating activities from discontinued operations cash used in investing activities from discontinued operations cash used in financing activities from discontinued operations see accompanying notes. reconciliation of non-gaap measurements to gaap results(amounts in millions, except per share amounts)(unaudited) in addition to the results provided in accordance with u.s. generally accepted accounting principles ("gaap") throughout this document, the company has provided non-gaap measurements which present diluted earnings per share from continuing operations excluding special items, our effective tax rate excluding special items, system sales, system sales excluding the impact of foreign currency translation ("fx"), system sales excluding the impact of fx and 53rd week, core operating profit and core operating profit excluding 53rd week. core operating profit excludes special items and fx and we use core operating profit for the purposes of evaluating performance internally. we provide core operating profit and system sales excluding 53rd week to further enhance the comparability with the lapping of the 53rd week that was part of our fiscal calendar in 2016. special items are not included in any of our division segment results, and we believe the elimination of fx provides better year-to-year comparability without the distortion of foreign currency fluctuations. the special items are described in (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), (g) and (h) in the accompanying notes. these non-gaap measurements are not intended to replace the presentation of our financial results in accordance with gaap. rather, the company believes that the presentation of diluted earnings per share from continuing operations excluding special items, our effective tax rate excluding special items, core operating profit and core operating profit excluding 53rd week provide additional information to investors to facilitate the comparison of past and present operations, excluding items in the quarters and years ended december 31, 2017 and december 31, 2016 that the company does not believe are indicative of our ongoing operations due to their size and/or nature. system sales and system sales growth include the results of all restaurants regardless of ownership, including company-owned and franchise restaurants that operate our concepts. sales of franchise restaurants typically generate ongoing franchise and license fees for the company at a rate of 3% to 6% of sales. franchise restaurant sales are not included in company sales on the consolidated statements of income; however, the franchise and license fees are included in the company’s revenues. we believe system sales and system sales growth are useful to investors as significant indicators of the overall strength of our business as they incorporate all of our revenue drivers, company and franchise same-store sales as well as net unit growth. 12/31/16(as restated) 12/31/16(as restated) consolidated year ended 12/31/16(as restated) 12/31/16(as restated) kfc division pizza hut division taco bell division consolidated gaap company sales franchise sales system sales foreign currency impact on system sales kfc division gaap company sales franchise sales system sales foreign currency impact on system sales 12/31/16(as restated) 12/31/16(as restated) pizza hut division gaap company sales franchise sales system sales foreign currency impact on system sales taco bell division gaap company sales franchise sales system sales foreign currency impact on system sales yum! brands, inc. segment results (amounts in millions) (unaudited) corporate andunallocated corporate andunallocated the above tables reconcile segment information, which is based on management responsibility, with our consolidated summary of results. corporate and unallocated expenses comprise items that are not allocated to segments for performance reporting purposes. the corporate and unallocated column in the above tables includes, among other amounts, all amounts that we have deemed special items. see reconciliation of non-gaap measurements to gaap results. yum! brands, inc. segment results (amounts in millions) (unaudited) corporate andunallocated corporate andunallocated the above tables reconcile segment information, which is based on management responsibility, with our consolidated summary of results. corporate and unallocated expenses comprise items that are not allocated to segments for performance reporting purposes. the corporate and unallocated column in the above tables includes, among other amounts, all amounts that we have deemed special items. see reconciliation of non-gaap measurements to gaap results. notes to the consolidated summary of results, consolidated balance sheets and consolidated statements of cash flows (amounts in millions) (unaudited) in connection with our previously announced plans to have at least 98% franchise restaurant ownership by the end of 2018, we recorded net refranchising gains during the quarters ended december 31, 2017 and 2016 of $752 million and $88 million, respectively, that have been reflected as special items. during the years ended december 31, 2017 and 2016, we recorded net refranchising gains of $1.1 billion and $163 million, respectively, that have been reflected as special items. the fourth quarter 2017 net refranchising gains related primarily to refranchising kfc restaurants in thailand, australia and the uk, and the refranchising of taco bell, kfc and pizza hut restaurants in the u.s. the fourth quarter 2016 net refranchising gains related primarily to refranchising taco bell restaurants in the u.s. and kfc restaurants in thailand and germany. in the fourth quarter of 2016, we announced our plan to transform our business. major features of the company's strategic transformation plans involve being more focused on development of our three brands, increasing our franchise ownership and creating a leaner, more efficient cost structure (“yum’s strategic transformation initiatives”). during the quarters ended december 31, 2017 and 2016, we recognized special item charges of $8 million and $33 million, respectively, related to these initiatives. during the years ended december 31, 2017 and 2016, we recognized special item charges of $23 million and $67 million, respectively. in the fourth quarter of 2017, these costs primarily related to contract termination costs, that were recorded within g&a. during the remainder of 2017 and 2016, these costs related primarily to severance, a 2016 voluntary retirement program offered to certain u.s. employees and relocation costs that were recorded within g&a. on may 1, 2017, we reached an agreement with our pizza hut u.s. franchisees that will improve brand marketing alignment, accelerate enhancements in operations and technology and includes a permanent commitment to incremental advertising contributions by franchisees beginning in 2018. during the quarter and year ended december 31, 2017, we recorded special item charges of $11 million and $31 million, respectively, for these investments. the majority of these amounts were recorded as franchise and license expenses or g&a. we recorded a non-cash charge of $22 million related to the adjustment of certain historical deferred vested liability balances in our qualified u.s. plan during the first quarter of 2017. additionally, during the fourth quarter of 2016, the company allowed certain former employees with deferred vested balances in the yum retirement plan an opportunity to voluntarily elect an early payout of their pension benefits. as a result of payments made of $225 million related to this program exceeding the sum of service and interest costs within the plan, we recorded a special items settlement charge of $24 million in g&a during the quarter and year ended december 31, 2016. in connection with this program, we incurred an additional special items settlement charge of $1 million during the third quarter of 2017. these charges are recorded in other pension (income) expense. during the fourth quarter of 2017, we recorded a one-time charge of $434 million related to the tax cuts and jobs act of 2017 (“tax act”) as enacted by the united states government on december 22, 2017. this charge included a deemed repatriation tax expense of $170 million on undistributed foreign earnings, $75 million of expense associated with the remeasurement of net deferred tax assets to the new 21% u.s. corporate tax rate and $189 million of valuation allowances established against foreign tax credit carryforwards which we no longer expect to utilize under the territorial system that is part of the tax act. this one-time charge is based upon our current estimates and interpretations of the tax act, and could be subject to further change as additional guidance and accounting interpretation is issued.
