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SHANGHAI, China – Yum China Holdings, Inc. reported unaudited results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2025. Yum China is the largest restaurant company in China. It operates over 16,000 restaurants under six brands across over 2,300 cities in China. KFC and Pizza Hut are the leading brands in the quick-service and casual dining restaurant spaces in China, respectively. In addition, Yum China has partnered with Lavazza to develop the Lavazza coffee concept in China.
Total system sales grew 2% year over year (“YoY”), excluding foreign currency translation (“F/X”). The growth was primarily attributable to 4% of net new unit contribution, partially offset by one fewer business day in 2025, as 2024 was a leap year.
Same-store sales advanced to 100% of the prior year’s level for the first time since the first quarter of 2024.
Same-store transactions grew 6% YoY, the ninth consecutive quarter of growth.
Total revenues increased 1% YoY to $3.0 billion (a 2% increase excluding F/X).
The Company opened 247 net new stores in the quarter, with 62 net new stores opened by franchisees, accounting for 25%.
Total store count reached 16,642 as of March 31, 2025, including 11,943 KFC stores and 3,769 Pizza Hut stores.
Delivery sales grew 13% YoY, maintaining the double-digit annual growth Yum China has sustained over the past 11 years. Delivery contributed approximately 42% of KFC and Pizza Hut’s Company sales.
Operating profit grew 7% YoY to $399 million. Core operating profit grew 8% YoY.
OP margin was 13.4%, an increase of 80 basis points YoY, supported by restaurant margin expansion and G&A savings.
Restaurant margin was 18.6%, an increase of 100 basis points YoY, driven primarily by savings in Food and Paper cost and Occupancy and Other Operating expenses.
Diluted EPS increased 8% YoY to $0.77, a record-high for the first quarter, or up 10% YoY excluding F/X. Excluding the negative impact of $0.02 from F/X and the mark-to-market equity investments in the first quarters of 2025 and 2024, Diluted EPS increased 12% YoY.
Returned $262 million to shareholders through $172 million in share repurchases and $90 million in cash dividends.
Digital sales reached $2.6 billion, with digital ordering accounting for approximately 93% of total Company sales.
Total membership of KFC and Pizza Hut exceeded 540 million, up 12% versus the prior year. Member sales accounted for approximately 66% of KFC and Pizza Hut’s system sales in aggregate.
Joey Wat, CEO of Yum China, commented, “We achieved a solid first-quarter performance amid an uncertain market environment. These results underscore the resilience of our business and the success of our dual-focus strategy, emphasizing innovation and operational efficiency. KFC continued to show resilience, delivering solid growth and profitability through both good times and bad. Pizza Hut continued its positive momentum after reaching what we believe was an inflection point. Our innovations touch every aspect of the business. KFC launched the spicy flavor of Original Recipe Chicken for the first time since we entered China in 1987. Pizza Hut added fresh twists to its classic Super Supreme flavor, offering it on burgers and pasta in addition to pizzas.”
Wat continued, “Our breakthrough model, KCOFFEE Cafe, reached the milestone of 1,000 locations. This business model leverages KFC’s store space, resources and membership to attract additional traffic. For Pizza Hut, building on the success of WOW store conversions, we have opened brand new WOW stores in lower tier cities, where capex can be as low as half of a regular Pizza Hut store. Our teams are also continuously exploring ways to create more operational efficiency through innovative technologies, such as robotics and Generative AI. In the current evolving market environment, we remain steadfast in achieving our full year targets, including 1,600-1,800 net new stores, while creating sustainable, long-term value for our shareholders.”
