Jollibee Foods Corp. (JFC), the Philippine-listed holding company founded by tycoon Tony Tan Caktiong, is carving out the overseas arm from the P250 billion fast-food empire to be listed on a US stock exchange by next year.
It would be the biggest restructuring in Jollibee’s five-decade history, and one that builds on a global ambition that began with its first overseas purchase, the Yonghe King beef noodle chain in China, in 2004.
Positive price reaction
Investors cheered the news on Tuesday, with the stock rallying 14.5 percent to P210 per share, its strongest close in two months.
The price surge trimmed losses, although the stock is still trading about 21 percent lower over the past 12 months.
Management’s view
“As a proudly homegrown Philippine company, we carry our heritage and express our national pride into this next chapter of our journey,” said Ernesto Tanmantiong, Jollibee Group global president and CEO.
“Our move toward an international listing demonstrates the strength of the Jollibee Group, a company with Filipino roots competing on the world stage,” he added.
Deal expert’s view
“Jollibee is certainly starting the year with a bang with its most ambitious restructuring and capital markets exercise since it listed on the PSE in 1993,” said Juan Paolo Colet, managing director at China Bank Capital.
“It’s a novel way for a Philippine blue chip to list its foreign operations while ensuring that eligible shareholders at the time of the spin-off are able to capture the complete economics of the move,” he added.
Why list in the US?
“Considering that U.S. equities are trading at hefty premiums relative to other markets, a US listing makes strategic sense,” said Shawn Atienza, AP Securities research analyst.
“Near-term effects could move JFC’s price higher as investors could take advantage of a low-risk entry now and have exposure to its international business listing as promised,” he added.
AP Securities has a “buy” rating on JFC with a target price of P356.72 per share, or about 76 percent higher than its current price of P202.60 per share.
Valuing a two-decade strategy
By separating the global business and listing it in the U.S., JFC gives a wider pool of investors a clearer look at what that business is worth.
“The spin-off and listing of JFCI should fully unlock the value of Jollibee’s international business,” Colet said, referring to the international entity, Jollibee Foods Corp. International (JFCI).
“JFCI will be seen as having comparatively higher growth potential given the sheer size of the global consumer space, but that also comes with the higher risk of breaking into new markets. Meantime, JFC will become a pure play on the Philippine food-service market where there is still room to refresh and grow a predominantly mature brand portfolio,” he added.
Making it fair for local small investors
According to JFC, each existing shareholder is expected to receive shares in the new international company in proportion to their current holdings.
“The company should find a way to make it easy for recipients of the JFCI shares to hold and trade them on a foreign exchange,” Colet said.
“This includes helping with the cost-efficient transfer of the initial shares and facilitating the opening of foreign brokerage accounts. They have to make sure that small retail investors in the Philippines are not disadvantaged in the process of listing their JFCI shares,” he added.
Overseas growth is fast but profitability lags
In the past decade, it acquired US fast-food chain Smashburger, Tim Ho Wan, The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, and South Korea’s Compose Coffee.
After the entry of its chief financial office Richard Shin in 2022, the company refined its strategy to focus on four categories: chicken, Chinese cuisine, coffee and tea, and burgers.
The company had 10,304 stores worldwide as of September last year, with about 67 percent of these located overseas.
JFC’s broader focus means its international operations are growing at a faster pace, though domestic operations continue to deliver most of its profits.
In terms of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization, the international business accounted for 38.1 percent, while the domestic business contributed nearly 62 percent during the first nine months of 2025.
For 2026, Shin expects to sustain their growth momentum.
“[W]e are confident to continue the double-digit growth in 2026,” he said in a statement last Nov. 14, 2025.
Investors are taking a second look
“The spin-off of its international business could trigger a major revaluation of the company in the future, as a sizeable portion of investors are betting on JFC’s international segments to serve as its next leg of growth,” Atienza said.
“This would effectively remove its biggest growth driver and could lead to a reclassification of the company as heavily mature once the spin-off is executed,” he added.
With the US. listing set for late 2027, JFC’s next test is proving its overseas business can catch up in terms of contributions to the bottom line.
“The biggest upside is that, if the international business performs well on the global stage, the probability of its profits being valued significantly higher than if it were listed solely on the PSE is high,” Atienza said.
Miguel R. Camus has been a reporter covering various domestic business topics since 2009.
