Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC Takes Position in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC)

Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC bought a new position in shares of Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 51,367 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,313,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Yum China by 53.7% in the 2nd quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 1,088 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in Yum China in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Yum China by 43.9% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 846 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Yum China in the 1st quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Yum China by 906.5% in the third quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 926 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 834 shares during the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Yum China Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:YUMC opened at $47.09 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company’s fifty day moving average is $44.67 and its 200 day moving average is $37.43. The stock has a market cap of $17.88 billion, a PE ratio of 20.84, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.36. Yum China Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $28.50 and a 52 week high of $52.00.

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $3.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.03 billion. Yum China had a net margin of 7.97% and a return on equity of 13.39%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.59 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Yum China Holdings, Inc. will post 2.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Yum China Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be issued a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.36%. Yum China’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on YUMC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Yum China from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $35.50 to $60.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Yum China from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Yum China to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Macquarie upgraded Yum China from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $30.00 to $37.40 in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $51.68.

Yum China Company Profile

Yum China Holdings, Inc owns, operates, and franchises restaurants in the People's Republic of China. The company operates through KFC, Pizza Hut, and All Other segments. It operates restaurants under the KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, Lavazza, Little Sheep, and Huang Ji Huang concepts. The company also operates V-Gold Mall, a mobile e-commerce platform to sell products; and offers online food deliver services.