David Gibbs
Stefanie Smith | CNBC
The arriving CEO of Taco Bell’s parent company Yum Brands is not ruling out adding another brand to its restaurant portfolio.
“We don’t need an possessions to grow,” incoming CEO David Gibbs told analysts on a Wednesday conference call. “Our brands today are strong by around the world, with plenty of growth opportunities, but we certainly wouldn’t rule out an acquisition.”
Gibbs, who is currently Yum’s chief serving officer, will replace outgoing CEO Greg Creed in January. Gibbs said that he would share myriad of his plans to drive growth in 2020 when he takes the helm.
In recent history, Yum’s deals have been affiliated to technology. In December, Pizza Hut announced its acquisition of QuikOrder, the e-commerce platform that it had already been using to change some U.S. sales. At the time, Yum said it was one of its largest acquisitions to date. Last year, it also bought a 3% hazarded in third-party delivery provider GrubHub.
Its GrubHub investment weighed on Yum’s third-quarter profits after KFC’s parent company interchanged the fair value of the investment. The shares closed down 5.8% to 103.34 on Wednesday.