KFC tries to join UN

Article Excerpt

YUM! BRANDS INC. $34 (New York symbol YUM; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 467.7 million; Market cap: $15.9 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.5: WSSF Rating: Above Average) is a fast-food operator whose main brands include Kentucky Fried Chicken. “Colonel” Harland Sanders, originator of the KFC recipe, turned himself into the personification of the brand. He was its spokesperson until his death in 1980. Yum recently hired an actor, dressed him up like Colonel Sanders, and sent him to United Nations headquarters in New York. The purpose of the stunt was to publicize Yum’s new grilled chicken as an alternative to its signature fried chicken. The actor asked Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary General, to register the “Grilled Nation” of grilled chicken eaters as the UN’s 193rd member state. The stunt probably offended some, but the free publicity and word of mouth that Yum gets should vastly outweigh any loss of business. Meanwhile, the company earned $0.70 a share in the three months…