Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) Price Target Raised to $144.00

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) had its price objective lifted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $137.00 to $144.00 in a research note released on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a neutral rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. TD Cowen reiterated a buy rating and set a $156.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Yum! Brands from $143.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. They issued a neutral rating and a $150.00 price target for the company. Evercore ISI cut Yum! Brands from an outperform rating to an inline rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $160.00 to $145.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Yum! Brands from $155.00 to $153.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Yum! Brands presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $145.25.

Yum! Brands Stock Performance

NYSE:YUM opened at $130.60 on Monday. Yum! Brands has a fifty-two week low of $115.53 and a fifty-two week high of $143.20. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $133.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $135.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.16, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.08.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The restaurant operator reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.80 billion. Yum! Brands had a negative return on equity of 18.90% and a net margin of 21.96%. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.41 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Yum! Brands will post 5.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Yum! Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th were given a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 27th. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.05%. Yum! Brands’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.52%.

Insider Activity at Yum! Brands

In related news, CEO David W. Gibbs sold 7,069 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.92, for a total value of $974,956.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 159,132 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,947,485.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO David W. Gibbs sold 7,005 shares of Yum! Brands stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.43, for a total value of $941,682.15. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 155,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,955,351.69. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO David W. Gibbs sold 7,069 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.92, for a total transaction of $974,956.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 159,132 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,947,485.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 101,629 shares of company stock valued at $13,888,443 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Yum! Brands

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Manchester Capital Management LLC increased its position in Yum! Brands by 165.7% in the 1st quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 186 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the period. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings 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 valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Yum! Brands in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the first quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new position in Yum! Brands in the 1st quarter valued at $37,000. 82.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Yum! Brands

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.