NewEdge Wealth LLC Invests $731,000 in Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM

NewEdge Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 4,572 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $731,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Chancellor Financial Group WB LP purchased a new position in Yum! Brands during the 2nd quarter worth $627,000. Great Lakes Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Yum! Brands during the 2nd quarter valued at $444,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands in the 2nd quarter worth $225,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands in the 2nd quarter worth $469,000. Finally, Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab bought a new position in shares of Yum! Brands during the 2nd quarter worth $6,953,000. Institutional investors own 82.37% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Yum! Brands

In other news, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 268 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.15, for a total transaction of $41,044.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 483 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $73,971.45. This trade represents a 35.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP David Eric Russell sold 7,961 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.15, for a total transaction of $1,219,227.15. Following the sale, the vice president owned 11,960 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,831,674. This represents a 39.96% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 18,549 shares of company stock valued at $2,890,168. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

More 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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on YUM. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Yum! Brands from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Yum! Brands from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Yum! Brands from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $180.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $174.65.

Yum! Brands Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of Yum! Brands stock opened at $153.31 on Friday. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a 52-week low of $137.33 and a 52-week high of $170.14. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $153.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $155.98. The company has a market cap of $41.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.28, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.55.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last released its quarterly 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. The company had revenue of $2.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.18 billion. Yum! Brands had a negative return on equity of 24.57% and a net margin of 25.42%.The firm’s revenue was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.44 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 6.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Yum! Brands declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, June 16th that authorizes the company to repurchase $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to repurchase up to 9.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.