Westpac Banking Corp Trims Stock Holdings in Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM

Westpac Banking Corp trimmed its holdings in Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) by 7.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 41,385 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 3,486 shares during the period. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Yum! Brands were worth $6,261,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of YUM. Wiser Advisor Group LLC purchased a new position in Yum! Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Community Bank N.A. bought a new position in Yum! Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Yum! Brands by 81.7% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 198 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Yum! Brands in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Torren Management LLC bought a new position in Yum! Brands in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. 82.37% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Yum! Brands

In other news, CEO Christopher Lee Turner sold 270 shares of Yum! Brands stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.14, for a total transaction of $39,997.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 64,282 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,522,735.48. The trade was a 0.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 261 shares of Yum! Brands stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.14, for a total transaction of $38,664.54. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 483 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $71,551.62. This represents a 35.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 quarter, insiders sold 5,895 shares of company stock valued at $906,499. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Yum! Brands Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:YUM opened at $146.57 on Wednesday. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a one year low of $137.33 and a one year high of $169.39. The company has a market cap of $40.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.64, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.57. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $156.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $155.66.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.11. Yum! Brands had a net margin of 20.48% and a negative return on equity of 23.51%. The company had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.30 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 6.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Yum! Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 27th. Yum! Brands’s payout ratio is currently 48.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on YUM shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $165.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Monday, April 20th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $180.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Thursday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $168.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Monday, May 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Yum! Brands from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Yum! Brands from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $176.17.

More Yum! Brands News

Here are the key news stories impacting Yum! Brands this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Yum! Brands may sell Pizza Hut to LongRange Capital are supporting a “sum-of-the-parts” thesis, with investors seeing potential upside from a leaner portfolio and lower leverage if proceeds are used to pay down debt. Yum Brands in talks to sell Pizza Hut to private equity firm: report
• Positive Sentiment: Yum! Brands announced a leadership transition for its COO role, with Tracy Skeans set to retire after more than 25 years and stay on in an advisory capacity, which may reassure investors that succession is being handled smoothly. Yum! Brands Announces Retirement of Tracy Skeans, Chief Operating Officer and Chief People & Culture Officer
• Neutral Sentiment: KFC launched a Supergirl-themed summer promotion with limited-edition meals, sauces, and collectibles, which could help traffic but is too early to judge as a material earnings driver. Supergirl Summer Takes Off at KFC® with New Supergirl Ultimate Meal, Character-Inspired Sauce Showdowns and Must-Have Limited-Edition Collectibles
• Neutral Sentiment: Jim Cramer highlighted Yum! Brands as one of several non-AI stocks for diversification, which may keep YUM on investor watchlists but does not directly change fundamentals. Jim Cramer says look to buy these 5 stocks outside the AI trade for diversification
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold a small number of shares under a pre-arranged 10b5-1 trading plan, and while the sale was routine, insider selling can still weigh on sentiment. SEC Form 4 filing

Yum! Brands Company 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.