Pizza Hut may soon be heading into a new era. According to a new report from Reuters , parent company Yum! Brands is in exclusive negotiations to sell the struggling pizza chain to private-equity firm LongRange Capital, marking what could be one of the biggest shakeups in the restaurant industry this year. The reported talks come less than a year after Yum publicly announced it was exploring strategic alternatives for Pizza Hut, including a potential sale. Investors appeared to welcome the latest development, with Yum shares rising nearly 3% in after-hours trading following the report. While neither company has officially confirmed a deal, the outelt reported that LongRange has emerged as the frontrunner after beating out other interested bidders and entering an exclusive negotiating period with Yum. The potential sale reflects the increasingly difficult position Pizza Hut finds itself in.…