Yum! Brands’ (YUM) Neutral Rating Reiterated at BTIG Research

BTIG Research reaffirmed their neutral rating on shares of Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on YUM. Seaport Research Partners began coverage on Yum! Brands in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $162.00 price objective on the stock. Gordon Haskett cut their target price on Yum! Brands from $182.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Yum! Brands from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Yum! Brands from $160.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $167.00 price target (down from $174.00) on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $175.67.

Yum! Brands Stock Performance

Shares of YUM traded down $4.74 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $161.35. 2,373,527 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,408,670. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $146.92 and its 200 day moving average is $153.58. Yum! Brands has a 1-year low of $134.26 and a 1-year high of $170.14. The stock has a market cap of $44.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.53.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The restaurant operator reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.05. Yum! Brands had a negative return on equity of 24.57% and a net margin of 25.42%. The business had revenue of $2.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.05 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.58 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Yum! Brands will post 6.41 EPS for the current year.

Yum! Brands Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th were issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 9th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Yum! Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.08%.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Tracy Skeans sold 3,494 shares of Yum! Brands stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.00, for a total value of $552,052.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 3 shares in the company, valued at $474. This trade represents a 99.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Christopher Turner sold 285 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.11, for a total value of $39,931.35. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 63,225 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,858,454.75. This represents a 0.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 4,288 shares of company stock valued at $666,149 over the last 90 days. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the second quarter worth approximately $4,186,811,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Yum! Brands by 1,373.2% in the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,631,940 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $740,462,000 after buying an additional 4,317,526 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in Yum! Brands in the second quarter valued at approximately $638,589,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in Yum! Brands in the second quarter valued at approximately $297,591,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Yum! Brands in the second quarter valued at approximately $279,432,000. Institutional investors own 82.37% of the company’s stock.

Yum! Brands Company Profile

Yum! Brands, Inc is a global restaurant company that operates and franchises quick-service restaurants under the KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and Habit Burger & Grill brands. Its restaurants serve customers through dine-in, takeout, delivery and digital ordering channels.

The company’s brands offer a range of products, including KFC’s chicken meals, Taco Bell’s Mexican-inspired food, Pizza Hut’s pizzas and related items, and Habit Burger & Grill’s chargrilled burgers and sandwiches.