According to Reuters, “Yum Brands Inc., parent of the KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut fast-food chains, said it made a preliminary offer to buy most of the shares of China’s Little Sheep restaurants that it does not already own.”

 

“Yum, which owns 27.2 percent of Little Sheep’s stock, said it would wait for approval from regulators before making a formal offer for the remaining shares in the chain, which owns and operates Mongolian hot pot restaurants, primarily in China. Yum said Little Sheep’s chairman and other shareholders would keep a minority interest.’Should any proposed transaction close at a reasonable price, we would view it as a positive for Yum, as it would further solidify Yum’s position as the leading restaurant company in fast-growing China,’ Janney Capital Markets Mark Kalinowski said in a client note.”