Aberdeen Group plc Purchases 11,465 Shares of Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group plc increased its stake in Yum! Brands by 4.8%, acquiring an additional 11,465 shares, bringing its total ownership to approximately 249,909 shares valued at $37 million.
• Yum! Brands reported earnings of $1.44 per share for the last quarter, which was below analysts' expectations of $1.46, despite a year-over-year revenue increase of 9.6%.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.71 per share, representing an annualized dividend of $2.84 and a yield of 2.0%.

Aberdeen Group plc boosted its position in Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM - Free Report) by 4.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 249,909 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after buying an additional 11,465 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc owned approximately 0.09% of Yum! Brands worth $37,032,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Yum! Brands by 151.4% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 156,690 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $24,657,000 after buying an additional 94,355 shares in the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC bought a new stake in Yum! Brands in the 1st quarter valued at about $270,000. Sowell Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Yum! Brands in the 1st quarter valued at about $939,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Yum! Brands by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 353,103 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $55,564,000 after buying an additional 6,673 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Yum! Brands by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 256,961 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $40,435,000 after buying an additional 3,172 shares in the last quarter. 82.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Yum! Brands Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of NYSE YUM opened at $141.53 on Monday. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a twelve month low of $122.13 and a twelve month high of $163.30. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $147.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $146.72. The company has a market capitalization of $39.28 billion, a PE ratio of 27.92, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.72.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The restaurant operator reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.46 by ($0.02). Yum! Brands had a negative return on equity of 21.01% and a net margin of 18.11%.The business had revenue of $1.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.35 EPS. Yum! Brands's quarterly revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 5.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Yum! Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were issued a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 2nd. Yum! Brands's payout ratio is 56.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on YUM. Melius started coverage on Yum! Brands in a research report on Monday, July 14th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $200.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on Yum! Brands in a research note on Wednesday. They set a "sector perform" rating and a $165.00 price target for the company. TD Cowen cut their price target on Yum! Brands from $158.00 to $156.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $167.00 price target (up previously from $165.00) on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Yum! Brands from $153.00 to $151.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $161.48.

Insider Activity at Yum! Brands

In related news, Director Weir Mirian M. Graddick sold 2,038 shares of Yum! Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.30, for a total value of $296,121.40. Following the sale, the director owned 1,233 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $179,154.90. The trade was a 62.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO David W. Gibbs sold 7,176 shares of Yum! Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.80, for a total transaction of $1,074,964.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 102,893 shares in the company, valued at $15,413,371.40. This trade represents a 6.52% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 36,195 shares of company stock worth $5,348,137. Company insiders own 0.33% 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.

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