Pizza Hut Europe serves up profit after £106m loss

The European arm of Pizza Hut has surged back into the black after making a loss of almost $140m (£106.4m) , according to newly-filed documents.

The London-headquartered division has reported a pre-tax profit of $12.2m (£9.3m) for 2023, after posting a pre-tax loss of $139.4m in 2022.

New documents filed with Companies House also show that its turnover edged up slightly from $39.3m (£29.9m) to $39.6m (£30.2m) over the same period.

Pizza Hut increased its UK turnover from $13m (£9.9m) to $13.7m (£10.4m) in the year but its sales in the rest of Europe decreased from $26.2m (£20m) to $25.9m (£19.7m).

Pizza Hut Europe earns royalties and other income from its franchise businesses.

Its made a pre-tax loss in 2022 after recognising an impairment loss of $135m (£103m) related to intellectual property which was not indicative of its current or future trading.

Pizza Hut eyeing further European growth

In a statement signed off by the board, Pizza Hut said: “Notwithstanding the pressures of the current economic climate, the company has made the appropriate investments and taken a considered path forward to ensure that the business continues to grow whilst delivering improved returns.”

Pizza Hut paid a dividend of $30m (£22.8m) to its parent company in the year after not issuing one in 2022.

In August, City A.M. reported that Yum! Brands, the owner of KFC and Pizza Hut, surged back into the black last year after a bumper year for its brands.

The group’s European division reported a pre-tax profit of $317.1m (£248.2m) for 2023 having posted a pre-tax loss of $300m (£234.8m) in the prior year, according to accounts with Companies House.

The firm is a holding company for the wider group’s investments and does not generate a turnover.

Its profit was generated through the write back of its investment in Yum! Restaurants Europe and dividends from that firm and Pizza Hut Europe.

The wider Yum! Brands group is headquartered in the US and includes KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and The Habit Burger Grill. The brands are operated by a separate company in China.

Yum!, which has previously owned Long John Silver’s and A&W Restaurants, was created after being spun off from PepsiCo in 1997.