Yum! Brands, Inc. today confirmed that ongoing operating EPS for the second quarter would be at the high end of the previously forecasted range of $0.42 to $0.44 ($0.83 to $0.87 prior to the recent 2-for-1 stock split).

Yum! Brands Chairman and CEO, David C. Novak, said “We had expected very strong second-quarter profit performance by our International business, which we communicated in our first-quarter earnings release. It is now likely that second-quarter International results will exceed our earlier forecast, which complements the solid performance of our U.S. portfolio of brands. The overall result is excellent performance for Yum! Brands in the second quarter.”

Chief Financial Officer, Dave Deno, said, “Global operating productivity trends are solid, and interest expense for the second quarter will be slightly favorable to forecast. In addition, the general strengthening of foreign currencies will enhance second-quarter results.

“Last week, we completed a successful refinancing of our bank credit facility and a $400 million bond offering. We were very pleased with the rates and oversubscribed levels of the bank credit facility and the bond offering. This leaves us strongly positioned to drive our key strategies of international expansion and multi-branding.”