Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) Stock Has Consensus Target Price of $171.78 According to Analysts

Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twenty-seven ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $175.67.

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Yum! Brands from $160.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Yum! Brands from $177.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Argus downgraded Yum! Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Yum! Brands from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn decreased their price objective on Yum! Brands from $184.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 30th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Yum! Brands

In related news, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 268 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.64, for a total value of $41,175.52. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 482 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $74,054.48. This trade represents a 35.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Christopher Turner sold 285 shares of Yum! Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.11, for a total transaction of $39,931.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 63,225 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,858,454.75. This represents a 0.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,288 shares of company stock worth $666,149. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new position in Yum! Brands in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Yum! Brands in the first quarter worth about $28,000. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, MADDEN SECURITIES Corp acquired a new position in shares of Yum! Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.37% of the company’s stock.

Yum! Brands Trading Down 2.9%

Shares of NYSE:YUM opened at $161.35 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $146.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $153.58. The firm has a market cap of $44.03 billion, a PE ratio of 12.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.53. Yum! Brands has a 12-month low of $134.26 and a 12-month high of $170.14.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The restaurant operator reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.05. Yum! Brands had a net margin of 25.42% and a negative return on equity of 24.57%. The company had revenue of $2.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.05 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.58 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Yum! Brands will post 6.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Yum! Brands Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th were given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 9th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Yum! Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.08%.

Yum! Brands Company Profile

Yum! Brands, Inc is a global restaurant company that operates and franchises quick-service restaurants under the KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and Habit Burger & Grill brands. Its restaurants serve customers through dine-in, takeout, delivery and digital ordering channels.

The company’s brands offer a range of products, including KFC’s chicken meals, Taco Bell’s Mexican-inspired food, Pizza Hut’s pizzas and related items, and Habit Burger & Grill’s chargrilled burgers and sandwiches.