Pizza Hut to close 250 restaurants across the U.S.
Why Pizza Hut is trimming its U.S. footprint
Christian Saclao
Wed, February 4, 2026 at 7:58 PM EST
3 min read
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Pizza Hut is reshaping its presence across America, but the upcoming changes may mean your local slice is about to disappear for good. Yum! Brands has announced that it is closing 250 underperforming Pizza Hut locations across the country in the first half of 2026. While the news marks a significant retreat for one of the world’s most recognizable pizza brands, the reasoning behind it goes far beyond simple cost-cutting. Read on to find out what’s really driving the closures and what Pizza Hut is doing next to stay competitive.
The closures are part of the ‘Hut Forward’ initiative
Yum! Brands revealed last November that it had placed Pizza Hut under a strategic review, a move that could ultimately include a sale of the iconic pizza chain. Three months later, details remain limited, though CEO Chris Turner said the review is “progressing as planned” and is still expected to wrap up later this year. What has become clearer, however, is that the process will involve trimming Pizza Hut’s U.S. footprint.
During the company’s earnings call on Wednesday, CFO Ranjith Roy confirmed that 250 underperforming domestic locations will close in the first half of the year. The shutdowns fall under Pizza Hut’s broader “Hut Forward” initiative, which focuses on refreshed marketing, upgraded technology, updated franchise agreements, and a one-time marketing investment from Yum! Brands. Roy described the effort as a necessary step to position the brand for longer-term growth.
While the loss of hundreds of storefronts sounds substantial, it only represents less than 4% of the chain’s total U.S. system. Ultimately, Yum Brands is betting that by pruning the weakest branches of the “Hut,” the rest of the brand can grow faster in an increasingly digital marketplace.
Short-term pain, long-term gain
Company leaders acknowledged that the planned U.S. closures, along with other headwinds, are expected to reduce Pizza Hut’s core operating profit by roughly 15%. Despite the immediate financial hit, Turner maintains that the company is “laser focused” on elevating the performance of Pizza Hut and its fellow portfolio brands, including Taco Bell, KFC, and Habit Burger & Grill. He emphasized that the goal isn’t just maintenance, but aggressive expansion and market dominance.
“As we conclude that (strategic review) process, we’ll share more on the long-term thoughts on the evolution of Yum’s strategy, but … our focus is now on all four brands, we want to perform exceptionally well. We want them to be growing. We want them to be taking share,” Turner explained.
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Turner further defended the decision by putting the numbers into context. On a global scale, Pizza Hut operates a massive network of 20,000 units. Removing 250 underperforming U.S. stores is a calculated cut meant to strengthen the brand’s foundation for whatever comes out of the current strategic review.
Pizza Hut’s struggles at home and abroad
The planned U.S. closures are part of a broader effort to stabilize the brand amid ongoing challenges. Pizza Hut has faced struggles both domestically and internationally, including 68 U.K. closures in October and halted growth plans in India.
Pizza Hut’s system-wide sales fell to $3.47 billion in 2025 from $3.61 billion in 2024, while global units dropped to 19,974 from 20,225, driven in part by franchise-related Q4 closures. Despite this, the chain opened over 440 domestic units in the quarter and nearly 1,200 globally, marking its fifth-highest year of new builds in seven decades.
Globally, same-store sales declined 1% in 2025, improving from -4% in 2024, with strength in the Middle East, Latin America, and Asia. In the U.S., however, same-store sales fell 3% in Q4 2025. Also, over the past decade, domestic system sales have declined nearly 2%, while its U.S. footprint has shrunk by almost 17%.
Source: Nation’s Restaurant News
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