Bank of New York Mellon Corp Has $279.61 Million Stake in Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM

Key Points

• Bank of New York Mellon trimmed its Yum! Brands stake by 2.5% in the first quarter, but still held 1.8 million shares worth about $279.6 million.
• Yum! Brands reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $1.50 versus the $1.39 estimate and revenue of $2.06 billion, while revenue rose 15.2% year over year.
• The company authorized a $4 billion share buyback and recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.75 per share, signaling continued capital returns to shareholders.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp lessened its stake in shares of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM - Free Report) by 2.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,798,345 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 45,287 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned about 0.65% of Yum! Brands worth $279,607,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Steph & Co. raised its holdings in Yum! Brands by 107.5% in the 1st quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 166 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Yum! Brands in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Yum! Brands in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Wiser Advisor Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Jessup Wealth Management Inc bought a new position in Yum! Brands during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. 82.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Yum! Brands Trading Down 2.9%

YUM stock opened at $147.71 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $154.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $156.85. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a 12-month low of $137.33 and a 12-month high of $170.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.82, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.56.

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

Yum! Brands declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, June 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $4.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to purchase up to 9.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Yum! Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 27th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 27th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Yum! Brands's dividend payout ratio is currently 48.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Yum! Brands

In other Yum! Brands news, COO Tracy L. Skeans sold 1,837 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.00, for a total transaction of $279,224.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 3,497 shares in the company, valued at $531,544. This represents a 34.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 277 shares of Yum! Brands stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 483 shares in the company, valued at $77,511.84. This represents a 36.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 12,423 shares of company stock worth $1,953,721 over the last three months. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup raised their target price on Yum! Brands from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Yum! Brands from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Monday, April 20th. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $168.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $174.81.

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

Yum! Brands 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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