Yum! Brands, Inc., the company that owns KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, has announced in a press release the appointment of Keith A. Meister into its board of directors.
The company also updated its outlook for 2015.
David Novak, the executive chairman of Yum! Brands, said in the press release that they pleased to have Meister into their Board of Directors.
"We are pleased to welcome to the Board one of our largest shareholders, Keith Meister, whose deep financial expertise will be invaluable to us as we conclude our disciplined review of our strategy and structure," he said. "The Yum! Board comprises a group of active and engaged directors, and we look forward to benefitting from Keith's vast experience and his input prior to the conclusion of our review."
Meister adds in the press release that he is looking forward to working with Yum! Brand's board of directors and its management.
"We have had a constructive dialogue with the Board and management over the last several months," he said. "This is a company with multiple avenues for unlocking significant long-term value."
Yum! Brands adds in the press release that Meister's appointment is effective on October 16, 2015.
His appointment expands the board of directors to 14 members.
Aside from Meister's appointment, the company also updated its 2015 outlook for its full-year earnings per share (EPS) and its China division same-store sales.
Yum! Brands said in the press release that they expect the full-year China division same-store sales to be at low-single-digit negative.
They also expect operating profit to be flat compared to the prior year.
Yum! Brands said in the press release that this is due to the difficulty of forecasting because of the ongoing volatility.
They expect the fourth quarter China division same-store sales to range from zero percent to four percent.
Reuters adds that Meister, who is the head of Corvex Management, had urged Yum! Brands to separate its China division, which consists of 6,900 restaurants, from the company.
In 2014, the restaurants from the China division contributed 57 percent of the company's overall revenue and 54 percent of its operating profits.
Reuters adds that Corvex is one of Yum! Brands' largest shareholders.
The hedge fund holds nearly five percent of the company's common stock.
Yum! Brands adds in the press release that they also expect foreign exchange headwinds to negatively impact their full-year EPS growth rate by one to two percentage points.
The company said that they expect their EPS to range from about flat to low-single-digit positive for the full year, combined with the revised sales trend in China.
