AIA Group Ltd Acquires 8,616 Shares of Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM

Key Points

• AIA Group Ltd boosted its Yum! Brands stake by 42.4% in Q1, buying 8,616 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 28,938 shares worth about $4.5 million.
• Yum! Brands reported solid quarterly results, with EPS of $1.50 beating expectations and revenue of $2.06 billion topping estimates; the company also raised attention with a $4 billion share repurchase program and a quarterly dividend of $0.75 per share.
• The stock is seeing mixed signals: analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus with an average target of $174.81, but insider selling and a Taco Bell lettuce-related outbreak could weigh on near-term sentiment and operations.

AIA Group Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM - Free Report) by 42.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,938 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after purchasing an additional 8,616 shares during the quarter. AIA Group Ltd's holdings in Yum! Brands were worth $4,499,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 8.0% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,861 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $1,055,000 after buying an additional 583 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in Yum! Brands by 124.5% in the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 151,316 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $22,422,000 after purchasing an additional 83,916 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in Yum! Brands by 10.0% in the 2nd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 117,824 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $17,447,000 after purchasing an additional 10,755 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its holdings in shares of Yum! Brands by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 130,205 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $19,294,000 after purchasing an additional 1,256 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HUB Investment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Yum! Brands by 59.1% during the 2nd quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,319 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $344,000 after purchasing an additional 861 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.37% of the company's stock.

Yum! Brands Price Performance

Shares of YUM stock opened at $147.71 on Monday. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a 1 year low of $137.33 and a 1 year high of $170.14. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $154.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $156.88. The company has a market cap of $40.71 billion, a PE ratio of 23.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.56.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.04 billion. Yum! Brands had a negative return on equity of 23.51% and a net margin of 20.48%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.30 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 6.74 EPS for the current year.

Yum! Brands announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, June 16th that allows the company to repurchase $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the restaurant operator to buy up to 9.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Yum! Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th were issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 27th. Yum! Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.39%.

Yum! Brands News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Yum! Brands reiterated its upcoming second-quarter earnings schedule, keeping attention on potential bottom-line improvement when results are released later this month. Yum! Brands Announces Q2 2026 Earnings and Conference Call Details
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts expect the Taco Bell lettuce scare to have a limited long-term impact, suggesting the stock could stabilize once the contamination issue is contained. The cyclosporiasis outbreak linked to Taco Bell is hitting some restaurant stocks, but don't expect a long-term impact
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are also focused on what Yum! Brands’ next quarterly report may show, with commentary pointing to expected earnings growth for the quarter. What to Expect From Yum! Brands’ Next Quarterly Earnings Report
• Negative Sentiment: Authorities linked Taco Bell’s shredded iceberg lettuce supplier to the cyclosporiasis outbreak, which could hurt Taco Bell sales, trigger cleanup costs, and create reputational risk for Yum! Brands. Sweetgreen Pares 26% Drop as Parasite Tied to Taco Bell Lettuce
• Negative Sentiment: Taco Bell has already removed the affected shredded lettuce in some states after government warnings, reinforcing concern that the outbreak may disrupt operations and consumer traffic in the near term. What to Expect From Yum! Brands’ Next Quarterly Earnings Report

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Aaron Powell sold 6,001 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total value of $962,680.42. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 12,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,925,521.26. This represents a 33.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 277 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.48, for a total value of $44,452.96. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 483 shares in the company, valued at approximately $77,511.84. This represents a 36.45% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 12,423 shares of company stock worth $1,953,721 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on YUM shares. Morgan Stanley raised Yum! Brands from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $180.00 to $185.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. Weiss Ratings cut Yum! Brands from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Yum! Brands from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $168.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Monday, May 4th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $174.81.

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.

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