Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) Receives $145.25 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) have been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the sixteen analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $145.25.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on YUM shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Yum! Brands from $143.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Yum! Brands from $150.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Yum! Brands in a report on Thursday, June 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Yum! Brands from $155.00 to $153.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Yum! Brands from $137.00 to $144.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th.

Yum! Brands Stock Performance

NYSE:YUM opened at $133.85 on Friday. Yum! Brands has a 52 week low of $115.53 and a 52 week high of $143.20. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $133.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $135.39. The firm has a market cap of $37.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.08.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The restaurant operator reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.02. Yum! Brands had a net margin of 21.96% and a negative return on equity of 18.90%. The company had revenue of $1.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.41 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Yum! Brands will post 5.62 EPS for the current year.

Yum! Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th were paid a $0.67 dividend. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 27th. Yum! Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.52%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO David W. Gibbs sold 7,005 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.43, for a total transaction of $941,682.15. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 155,883 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,955,351.69. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Yum! Brands news, Director Weir Mirian M. Graddick sold 1,309 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.40, for a total value of $179,856.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,233 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $169,414.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO David W. Gibbs sold 7,005 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.43, for a total value of $941,682.15. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 155,883 shares in the company, valued at $20,955,351.69. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 101,629 shares of company stock worth $13,888,443. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Yum! Brands

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Yum! Brands by 79.8% in the first quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 187 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Yum! Brands by 165.7% in the 1st quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 186 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Yum! Brands during the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Yum! Brands during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Yum! Brands by 43.6% in the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 270 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.37% of the company’s stock.

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.