PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators Takes $9.28 Million Position in Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM

PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators purchased a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 61,341 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $9,280,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in YUM. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $706,799,000. Junto Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the third quarter valued at approximately $133,251,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the third quarter valued at approximately $126,945,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Yum! Brands by 2.0% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 35,242,558 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $5,356,869,000 after buying an additional 684,946 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the third quarter valued at approximately $86,944,000. Institutional investors own 82.37% of the company’s stock.

Yum! Brands Price Performance

NYSE YUM opened at $150.78 on Friday. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a 12 month low of $137.33 and a 12 month high of $169.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.56 billion, a PE ratio of 24.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.57. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $155.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $155.60.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.11. Yum! Brands had a net margin of 20.48% and a negative return on equity of 23.51%. The business had revenue of $2.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.30 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 6.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Yum! Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 27th. Yum! Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

YUM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings cut Yum! Brands from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Yum! Brands from $174.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $177.00 price target on Yum! Brands in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $190.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Yum! Brands presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $176.17.

Insider Activity at Yum! Brands

In related news, CEO Sean Tresvant sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.68, for a total transaction of $464,040.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 3,140 shares in the company, valued at $485,695.20. This trade represents a 48.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Tracy L. Skeans sold 1,837 shares of Yum! Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.00, for a total transaction of $279,224.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 3,497 shares in the company, valued at approximately $531,544. This trade represents a 34.44% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 5,895 shares of company stock worth $906,499 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Yum! Brands News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Yum Brands is weighing an exit from Pizza Hut are boosting the stock on hopes that divesting the weaker pizza chain could sharpen execution and improve margins. Pizza Hut’s future in doubt as Yum Brands weighs exit and surprise company eyes takeover
• Positive Sentiment: Jim Cramer also argued that “a Yum free of Pizza Hut” could trade higher, reinforcing the market’s view that a possible sale would be a value-creating move for YUM. Jim Cramer Believes “A Yum Free of Pizza Hut Is a Yum That’s Going to Trade Much Higher”
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary raised Yum’s fair value estimate and cited stronger KFC and Taco Bell fundamentals, suggesting the stock may still have upside if the Pizza Hut situation is resolved favorably. How The Investment Story Is Shifting For Yum Brands (YUM) After New Targets And Pizza Hut Talks
• Neutral Sentiment: Yum announced that COO and Chief People Officer Tracy Skeans will retire after 25 years, a leadership change that adds some succession-planning focus but is not clearly a major business setback. Yum Brands COO Tracy Skeans stepping down after 25 years with the company
• Neutral Sentiment: Separate coverage repeated the retirement news, keeping the focus on management transition rather than a change in near-term operating results. Yum Brands COO and chief people officer to retire after 25 years with the company

About Yum! Brands

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.