Bank of Nova Scotia Sells 7,130 Shares of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM)

Key Points

• Bank of Nova Scotia reduced its stake in Yum! Brands, Inc. by 16.2%, selling 7,130 shares, and now holds 36,783 shares valued at approximately $5.79 million.
• Insider selling was noted as CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 272 shares and David W. Gibbs sold 7,117 shares, indicating a decline in their holdings by 6.47% and 13.42%, respectively.
• Yum! Brands' stock performance has analysts projecting a consensus price target of $159.95, with various ratings ranging from buy to hold.

Bank of Nova Scotia lowered its stake in Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM - Free Report) by 16.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 36,783 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 7,130 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia's holdings in Yum! Brands were worth $5,788,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 151.4% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 156,690 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $24,657,000 after purchasing an additional 94,355 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Yum! Brands in the first quarter valued at about $270,000. Sowell Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Yum! Brands in the first quarter valued at about $939,000. First National Bank Sioux Falls bought a new position in Yum! Brands in the first quarter valued at about $283,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Yum! Brands by 1.9% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 353,103 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $55,564,000 after purchasing an additional 6,673 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.37% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 272 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.28, for a total value of $40,332.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,755 shares in the company, valued at $260,231.40. This represents a 13.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO David W. Gibbs sold 7,117 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.60, for a total transaction of $1,043,352.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 102,893 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,084,113.80. This represents a 6.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 14,720 shares of company stock valued at $2,150,965. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on YUM shares. 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. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Yum! Brands from $151.00 to $153.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Yum! Brands from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. TD Securities reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $158.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and set a $185.00 target price on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $159.95.

Yum! Brands Stock Performance

Shares of YUM opened at $147.34 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $145.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $146.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.73. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a 52 week low of $122.13 and a 52 week high of $163.30.

Yum! Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were issued a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Yum! Brands's dividend payout ratio is currently 56.57%.

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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