Another outperforming quarter

Research evidence excerpt

Another outperforming quarter

Global Markets Research

Yum China YUMC.N YUMC US 31 July 2026

EQUITY: CONSUMER RELATED

Another outperforming quarter RatingRemains Buy

Both KFC & PH saw solid 1% SSSG in 2Q26; PH Target price Remains USD 59.50

acquisition an increasingly important growth driver in LT

Closing price USD 45.85 29 July 2026

2Q26 results ahead of expectation; sector leadership strengthened with innovation

Yum China (YUMC) reported 2Q26 results (30 July), beating the capital market’s

Implied upside +29.8%expectation again: quarterly revenue increased 13% y-y (+6% y-y ex currency) to

USD3.14bn (vs. Bloomberg consensus of USD3.07bn); operating profit increased by a

Market Cap (USD mn) 16,008.4

faster 14% y-y (+7% y-y ex currency) to USD348mn (vs. Bloomberg consensus of ADT (USD mn) 73.7

USD339mn), driven by the 0.2pp y-y improvement in OP margin despite the lifted cost

pressure from the higher delivery sales mix. Behind the better-than-expected financial

numbers we see continued progress of YUMC to strengthen its sector leadership: 1) Relative performance chart

YUMC has delivered 1% y-y same-store-sales growth (SSSG) for both KFC and Pizza

Hut (PH) in 2Q26 (Fig.2 ), while maintaining its strong store opening momentum (net new

stores of 560 in 2Q26, leading to 1,196 net additions in 1H26, or 63% of its full-year

target); 2) YUMC has demonstrated solid innovation capability with new products

introduced across KFC/ KCOFFEE/ KPRO, as well as PH. YUMC’s sales/ operation

outperformance against the mediocre catering sector’s consumption sentiment has

reinforced our confidence in the company. We, thus, maintain Buy with an unchanged

target price of USD59.50.

PH acquisition to be an increasingly important growth driver in long run