Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) Shares Acquired by Cibc World Markets Corp

Cibc World Markets Corp lifted its position in shares of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) by 15.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 44,122 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after buying an additional 5,906 shares during the quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp’s holdings in Yum! Brands were worth $5,919,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Yum! Brands during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new position in shares of Yum! Brands during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Yum! Brands during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Jackson Grant Investment Advisers Inc. increased its position in Yum! Brands by 52.1% during the 4th quarter. Jackson Grant Investment Advisers Inc. now owns 295 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in Yum! Brands during the 3rd quarter worth about $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.37% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Yum! Brands news, COO Tracy L. Skeans sold 8,638 shares of the company’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 value of $1,367,913.68. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 2,970 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $470,329.20. This represents a 74.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO David W. Gibbs sold 5,293 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.24, for a total value of $816,392.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 157,893 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,353,416.32. The trade was a 3.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 50,132 shares of company stock valued at $7,952,685. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on YUM shares. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $140.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $141.00 price objective (down previously from $153.00) on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Yum! Brands from $146.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Yum! Brands from $160.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, TD Securities lifted their price target on Yum! Brands from $151.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $150.95.

Yum! Brands Stock Performance

Yum! Brands stock opened at $157.58 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $142.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $137.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.98 billion, a PE ratio of 30.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.03. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a one year low of $122.13 and a one year high of $163.30.

Yum! Brands Increases Dividend

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

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.