Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) PT Lowered to $130.00 at Stifel Nicolaus

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) had its price target reduced by Stifel Nicolaus from $135.00 to $130.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a hold rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Yum! Brands from $133.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Yum! Brands from $132.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, June 3rd. Evercore ISI cut Yum! Brands from an outperform rating to an inline rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $160.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. TD Cowen reissued a buy rating and set a $156.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Thursday, June 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Yum! Brands in a report on Thursday, June 13th. They issued a neutral rating and a $150.00 target price for the company. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $145.00.

Yum! Brands Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:YUM opened at $127.13 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $35.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.07. Yum! Brands has a 1 year low of $115.53 and a 1 year high of $143.20. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $133.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $134.85.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The restaurant operator reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.71 billion. Yum! Brands had a negative return on equity of 18.64% and a net margin of 22.92%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.06 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Yum! Brands will post 5.65 EPS for the current year.

Yum! Brands announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, May 15th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the restaurant operator to repurchase up to 5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Yum! Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th were given a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 24th. Yum! Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.52%.

Insider Activity at Yum! Brands

In other news, Director Paget Leonard Alves sold 6,309 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.19, for a total transaction of $859,222.71. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO David W. Gibbs sold 7,073 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.14, for a total transaction of $969,991.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 168,879 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,160,066.06. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Paget Leonard Alves sold 6,309 shares of Yum! Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.19, for a total transaction of $859,222.71. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 33,398 shares of company stock worth $4,552,727 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Yum! Brands

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of YUM. Manchester Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Yum! Brands by 165.7% in the first quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 186 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Yum! Brands by 79.8% in the first quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 187 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Naples Money Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Bfsg LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Yum! Brands in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Institutional investors own 82.37% of the company’s stock.

Yum! Brands Company Profile

Yum! Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, develops, operates, and franchises quick service restaurants worldwide. The company operates through the KFC Division, the Taco Bell Division, the Pizza Hut Division, and the Habit Burger Grill Division segments. It also operates restaurants under the KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and The Habit Burger Grill brands, which specialize in chicken, pizza, made-to-order chargrilled burgers, sandwiches, Mexican-style food categories, and other food products.