Pizza Hut will be sold for $2.7 billion

(AP) - The struggling Pizza Hut restaurant chain will be sold for $2.7 billion by parent company Yum Brands.

Yum! Brands said in February that it was considering selling Pizza Hut and the chain looked to close 250 U.S. restaurants. The pizza chain has struggled with outdated stores and growing competition.

EN ESPAÑOL | La cadena Pizza Hut será vendida por $2,700 millones

Pizza Hut was founded in 1958 in Wichita, Kansas. PepsiCo acquired the chain in 1977 but spun off its restaurant division — which became Yum! Brands — in 1997.

Private equity firm LongRange Capital is buying Pizza Hut, excluding the mainland China business, for about $1.5 billion, the company said Tuesday. The mainland China Pizza Hut will be purchased by Yum China Holdings Inc. for approximately $1.2 billion, it said.

“Under LongRange and Yum China, Pizza Hut will be well positioned for future growth with ownership that brings deep expertise in the restaurant industry,” Yum! Brands CEO Chris Turner said in a statement.

Yum! Brands, whose other brands include KFC and Taco Bell, began a strategic review to explore options for Pizza Hut in November, with the chain reporting declining sales at comparable stores.

Louisville, Kentucky-based Yum! Brands expects both transactions to close in the third quarter.