Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Invests $9.57 Million in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC)

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 198,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,571,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.05% of Yum China as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in YUMC. GeoWealth Management LLC grew its stake in Yum China by 689.6% in the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 529 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares during the last quarter. Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new stake in Yum China in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Graney & King LLC acquired a new stake in Yum China in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Yum China by 58.5% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 878 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 324 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Yum China in the 4th quarter valued at about $48,000. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on YUMC. Daiwa America upgraded shares of Yum China to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Yum China from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $48.70.

Insider Buying and Selling at Yum China

In other news, insider Jeff Kuai sold 3,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.21, for a total value of $188,019.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 56,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,728,782.42. This represents a 6.45 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CTO Leila Zhang sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.59, for a total transaction of $202,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer now owns 52,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,634,474.25. This trade represents a 7.13 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 45,152 shares of company stock valued at $2,242,176 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Yum China Stock Up 2.6 %

Shares of NYSE YUMC opened at $46.75 on Tuesday. Yum China Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $28.50 and a 52-week high of $53.99. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $48.41 and a 200-day moving average of $47.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.53 billion, a PE ratio of 20.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by ($0.01). Yum China had a return on equity of 13.83% and a net margin of 8.06%. On average, analysts anticipate that Yum China Holdings, Inc. will post 2.54 EPS for the current year.

Yum China Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were given a $0.24 dividend. This is a boost from Yum China’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 6th. Yum China’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.20%.

Yum China Profile

Yum China Holdings, Inc owns, operates, and franchises restaurants in the People's Republic of China. The company operates through KFC, Pizza Hut, and All Other segments. It operates restaurants under the KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, Lavazza, Little Sheep, and Huang Ji Huang concepts. The company also operates V-Gold Mall, a mobile e-commerce platform to sell products; and offers online food deliver services.