LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Yum! Brands, Inc. today announced the completion of its acquisition of The Habit Restaurants, Inc., following the approval by The Habit Burger Grill stockholders. The transaction marks the addition of the first fast-casual concept to Yum! Brands’ portfolio of iconic global restaurant brands.
Yum! Brands acquired all of the issued and outstanding common shares of The Habit Burger Grill for $14 per share in cash or a total of approximately $375 million. Yum! Brands funded the transaction using cash on hand and available borrowing capacity under its credit facilities.
The acquisition of The Habit Burger Grill adds an award-winning fast-casual concept with a loyal fan-base to Yum! Brands, the world’s largest restaurant company in terms of units and parent of KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell. Founded in California in 1969, The Habit Burger Grill offers a flavor-forward variety of made-to-order items uniquely chargrilled over an open flame. Fan favorites include charburgers, hand-filleted and marinated chargrilled chicken sandwiches, sushi-grade chargrilled ahi tuna sandwiches, fresh salads, craveable sides and handmade frozen treats. The Habit Burger Grill, named Best Regional Fast Food in USA Today’s 2019 Best Readers’ Choice Awards, operates nearly 300 company-owned and franchised restaurants across the U.S. and in China.
“Today marks an important milestone in our company’s history as we officially welcome The Habit Burger Grill to the Yum! family,” said David Gibbs, CEO, Yum! Brands. “The Habit Burger Grill is a sweet spot within fast-casual because of its delicious California-inspired menu with premium ingredients at a QSR-like value, strong unit economics and tremendous untapped growth potential in the U.S. and internationally. We couldn’t be more excited about what the future holds for The Habit Burger Grill and believe our acquisition of this trend-forward brand is a ‘win-win-win’ all around. We’ve added another great restaurant brand with a huge runway for growth to our company, our franchisees have a new investment opportunity in an award-winning, fast-casual concept and The Habit Burger Grill can access Yum!’s unmatched scale and strengths in franchising, purchasing and brand-building.”
Yum! Brands estimates minimal impact to non-GAAP earnings per share before special items in 2020, with accretion beginning in 2021 and increasing thereafter.
“This is a historic day for The Habit Burger Grill and we’re extremely proud to join the Yum! family of brands,” said Russ Bendel, CEO, The Habit Burger Grill. “Our amazing team members and franchisees have always been focused on taking great care of our customers by providing a superior in-store experience and incredible food and none of that will change. Being part of Yum! will take The Habit Burger Grill to the next level by leveraging Yum!’s global scale, resources and franchising capabilities to strengthen and significantly grow our beloved brand for many years to come.”
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