Evolve Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM – Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 7,046 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $1,126,000.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in YUM. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Yum! Brands in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,186,811,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Yum! Brands during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $706,799,000. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in Yum! Brands by 20.0% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 19,419,826 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,938,139,000 after buying an additional 3,240,190 shares during the period. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. bought a new stake in Yum! Brands in the fourth quarter worth $272,794,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in Yum! Brands in the second quarter worth $279,432,000. 82.37% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Key Yum! Brands News
Here are the key news stories impacting Yum! Brands this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Yum! Brands outlined a renewed consumer-growth strategy centered on strengthening brand engagement, digital capabilities, loyalty programs and operational execution across KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut. The emphasis on personalized customer experiences and technology could support sales and franchisee performance. Yum! Brands Reveals New Path for Consumer Growth
- Positive Sentiment: The company appointed former HanesBrands CEO Steve Bratspies to its board, effective August 26. His experience managing global consumer brands and improving operations may add expertise as Yum! pursues growth and evaluates its portfolio. Yum! Brands Appoints Steve Bratspies to Board
- Neutral Sentiment: Pizza Hut is using a football-themed branding promotion ahead of the NFL season. The marketing effort could increase near-term visibility, but it comes as Yum! advances the multibillion-dollar sale of the chain, making the strategic implications more important than the promotion itself. Pizza Hut Branding Change
- Negative Sentiment: Shares faced pressure after Yum! announced a new chief executive officer. Although a leadership change could bring fresh momentum, investors may be concerned about execution risk and the direction of the company during the transition. Yum! Brands Slides on Naming New CEO
- Negative Sentiment: An insider reportedly reduced a Yum! Brands equity stake by 28%, while executive share withholding related to restricted-stock-unit vesting was also disclosed. These transactions are not necessarily signals of deteriorating fundamentals, but they can weigh on sentiment. Yum! Brands Insider Sale
- Negative Sentiment: Pomerantz LLP said it is investigating potential claims on behalf of Yum! investors. The announcement does not establish wrongdoing, but it adds legal and reputational uncertainty to the stock. Pomerantz Investor Investigation
Insider Activity
Yum! Brands Stock Up 0.2%
Shares of NYSE YUM opened at $153.31 on Monday. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a twelve month low of $137.33 and a twelve month high of $170.14. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $153.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $155.98. The firm has a market cap of $41.84 billion, a PE ratio of 19.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.55.
Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The restaurant operator reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.04. Yum! Brands had a net margin of 25.42% and a negative return on equity of 24.57%. The business had revenue of $2.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.44 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 6.42 earnings per share for the current year.
Yum! Brands announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, June 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to buy up to 9.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on YUM shares. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Yum! Brands from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $180.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Yum! Brands from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Yum! Brands from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Yum! Brands from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Yum! Brands from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Yum! Brands currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $174.65.
View Our Latest Report on Yum! Brands
Yum! Brands 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.
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