DnB Asset Management AS Has $55.22 Million Position in Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM)

DnB Asset Management AS grew its holdings in Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) by 4.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 411,578 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,148 shares during the period. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Yum! Brands were worth $55,217,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in YUM. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 2,664 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $357,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A grew its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A now owns 15,357 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,060,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Investment Partners LTD. increased its stake in shares of Yum! Brands by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Investment Partners LTD. now owns 3,231 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $433,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. lifted its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 1,575 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $211,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Yum! Brands by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 2,165 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $290,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. 82.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Yum! Brands Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:YUM opened at $157.62 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $146.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $138.46. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $122.13 and a fifty-two week high of $163.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.03.

Yum! Brands Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.71 dividend. This is a positive change from Yum! Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.80%. Yum! Brands’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.41%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Argus raised Yum! Brands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Yum! Brands from $140.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Yum! Brands from $154.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Yum! Brands from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $151.79.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Yum! Brands news, VP David Eric Russell sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.66, for a total transaction of $793,300.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 11,960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,897,573.60. This represents a 29.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Tracy L. Skeans sold 8,638 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.36, for a total transaction of $1,367,913.68. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 2,970 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $470,329.20. The trade was a 74.41 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 50,132 shares of company stock worth $7,952,685 in the last quarter. 0.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.