Yum! Brands

Formerly Tricon Global Restaurants, Yum! Brands, Inc., currently consists of Tricon's original holdings (Taco Bell, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and Pizza Hut) as well as the Long John Silver's and A&W All-American Food brands.

Based in Louisville, Kentucky, Yum! Brands, Inc., was established on May 16, 2002, with stockholders voting in favor of the name change at the company's annual shareholder's meeting. ("Tricon" was no longer an appropriate moniker now that the company owned more than three brands.) It was additionally decided that the company's international business would be renamed Yum! Restaurants International.

In perhaps the goofiest, most marketing-laden public statement I've ever had the misfortune to stumble upon, Yum! Brands Chairman and CEO David Novak remarked:

Yum! Brands better reflects our expanding portfolio of brands and the unique fun and recognition culture we are driving across our global company. It also...reinforces our Customer Mania passion to put a "Yum" on our customers [sic] faces all around the world... Our customers love the choice and variety multibranding offers, and our returns far exceed our cost of capital, making multibranding a win-win for our customers and shareholders alike. We view multibranding as a key enabler to accelerate the renewal of our existing asset base in the United States.

As of a 2002 press release, Yum! Brands, Inc., was "the world's largest restaurant company in terms of system units with over 32,500 restaurants in more than 100 countries and territories." Four of the company's brands (KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and Long John Silver's) are market leaders in each of their respective fast food niches.

Yum! Brands, Inc., is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker "YUCK" ... er... I mean, "YUM." You can also find them on the web at www.yum.com.