Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) Raised to “Buy” at Argus

Argus upgraded shares of Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $155.00 price objective on the restaurant operator’s stock.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on Yum! Brands from $147.00 to $145.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Yum! Brands from $137.00 to $144.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $145.00 target price on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Loop Capital cut their price target on shares of Yum! Brands from $143.00 to $140.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on Yum! Brands from $147.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $146.44.

Yum! Brands Stock Performance

Yum! Brands stock opened at $133.56 on Tuesday. Yum! Brands has a fifty-two week low of $124.76 and a fifty-two week high of $143.20. The stock has a market cap of $37.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $135.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $134.10.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The restaurant operator reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by ($0.04). Yum! Brands had a net margin of 21.13% and a negative return on equity of 18.93%. The firm had revenue of $1.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.90 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.44 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Yum! Brands will post 5.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Yum! Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $0.67 dividend. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Yum! Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Yum! Brands

In other news, CEO David W. Gibbs sold 7,059 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.94, for a total value of $959,600.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 149,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,307,396.90. This represents a 4.51 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 17,879 shares of company stock valued at $2,424,167. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Yum! Brands

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in YUM. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators boosted its holdings in shares of Yum! Brands by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 2,049 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $271,000 after buying an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Yum! Brands by 2.2% during the second quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 3,460 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $458,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co grew its holdings in Yum! Brands by 2.4% in the third quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 3,321 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $464,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Yum! Brands by 43.6% during the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 270 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Yum! Brands by 2.8% during the second quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 3,324 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $440,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. 82.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.