Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) CEO Sells $39,972.15 in Stock

Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) CEO Christopher Lee Turner sold 261 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.15, for a total value of $39,972.15. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 63,771 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,766,528.65. The trade was a 0.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Christopher Lee Turner also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, July 1st, Christopher Lee Turner sold 250 shares of Yum! Brands stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total transaction of $40,105.00.
• On Monday, June 1st, Christopher Lee Turner sold 270 shares of Yum! Brands stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.14, for a total transaction of $39,997.80.

Yum! Brands Stock Performance

NYSE:YUM opened at $152.37 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $42.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.17, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.55. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a one year low of $137.33 and a one year high of $170.14. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $153.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $156.53.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The restaurant operator reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.18 billion. Yum! Brands had a negative return on equity of 24.57% and a net margin of 25.42%.Yum! Brands’s quarterly revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.44 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 6.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Yum! Brands Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 27th were issued a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 27th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. Yum! Brands’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.74%.

Yum! Brands declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, June 16th that allows the company to repurchase $4.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the restaurant operator to reacquire up to 9.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

YUM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Yum! Brands from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $174.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Friday, July 31st. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Yum! Brands from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $168.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Monday, May 4th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $174.31.

Key Headlines Impacting Yum! Brands

Here are the key news stories impacting Yum! Brands this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan maintained an “overweight” rating on YUM while lowering its price target from $170 to $160. The revised target still implies upside and suggests the bank views the recent weakness as an opportunity, although the reduction reflects more cautious expectations. JPMorgan rating and price target report
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts continue to highlight YUM’s nearly $9 billion digital ecosystem, which spans mobile ordering, loyalty programs and restaurant operations. Stronger digital engagement could support sales, customer frequency and franchisee productivity over time. YUM’s digital growth engine
• Positive Sentiment: Commentary on a potential $2.7 billion Pizza Hut exit suggests a separation could simplify YUM’s brand portfolio, reduce debt and allow greater focus on faster-growing KFC and Taco Bell. The transaction remains a strategic possibility rather than a confirmed deal. YUM’s Pizza Hut exit analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: Vice President David Eric Russell sold 7,961 shares worth approximately $1.22 million, reducing his direct holdings by about 40%. The sale was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, limiting its value as a signal of management’s current outlook. SEC insider transaction filing
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that Michigan health officials contacted Yum! about a Taco Bell cyclospora outbreak before a public alert have raised concerns about customer traffic, sales, legal exposure and potential reputational damage. The issue remains a significant overhang for the stock. Michigan cyclospora alert involving Taco Bell

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Yum! Brands

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in YUM. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in Yum! Brands by 20.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 19,419,826 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,938,139,000 after purchasing an additional 3,240,190 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,164,814 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,991,573,000 after purchasing an additional 124,720 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,800,382 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,334,427,000 after acquiring an additional 121,304 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the 4th quarter worth approximately $706,799,000. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in Yum! Brands by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,471,127 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $676,392,000 after acquiring an additional 104,512 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.37% of the company’s stock.

Yum! Brands Company Profile

Yum! Brands, Inc (NYSE: YUM) is a global quick-service restaurant company that develops, operates and franchises a portfolio of well-known restaurant brands. The company’s principal brands are KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, each focused on distinct product categories—KFC on fried chicken and related menu items, Pizza Hut on pizza and complementary offerings, and Taco Bell on Mexican-inspired quick-service food. Yum! is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky and was formed as Tricon Global Restaurants in 1997 when PepsiCo spun off its restaurant businesses, later adopting the Yum! Brands name.

The company’s operating model centers on brand development, system growth and franchising; a large portion of its restaurants are operated by independent franchisees, and Yum! generates revenue through franchise royalties and fees in addition to sales from company-operated locations.