Concentric Capital Strategies LP Takes Position in Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM

Key Points

• Concentric Capital Strategies LP initiated a new position in Yum! Brands during the fourth quarter, buying 71,706 shares valued at about $10.85 million.
• Yum! Brands reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $1.50 versus the $1.39 consensus and revenue of $2.06 billion, up 15.2% year over year.
• The company approved a $4 billion share repurchase program and paid a $0.75 quarterly dividend, while analysts maintain a Moderate Buy consensus with an average target price of $176.12.

Concentric Capital Strategies LP acquired a new stake in Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 71,706 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $10,848,000.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wiser Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in Yum! Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Community Bank N.A. bought a new position in Yum! Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Jessup Wealth Management Inc bought a new position in Yum! Brands in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Yum! Brands in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Torren Management LLC bought a new position in Yum! Brands in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors own 82.37% of the company's stock.

Yum! Brands Trading Down 2.3%

Shares of YUM stock opened at $154.03 on Thursday. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a twelve month low of $137.33 and a twelve month high of $169.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.57. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $154.93 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $155.74.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.11. Yum! Brands had a negative return on equity of 23.51% and a net margin of 20.48%.The business had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.30 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 6.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Yum! Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th were issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 27th. Yum! Brands's dividend payout ratio is currently 48.39%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded Yum! Brands from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Yum! Brands from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $177.00 price objective on Yum! Brands in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Yum! Brands from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Yum! Brands presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $176.12.

Insider Transactions at Yum! Brands

In other Yum! Brands news, CEO Christopher Lee Turner sold 270 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.14, for a total value of $39,997.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 64,282 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,522,735.48. This represents a 0.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Sean Tresvant sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.68, for a total value of $464,040.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 3,140 shares of the company's stock, valued at $485,695.20. This trade represents a 48.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 5,895 shares of company stock valued at $906,499 over the last 90 days. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Key Yum! Brands News

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

• Positive Sentiment: The Pizza Hut divestiture should streamline Yum! Brands and allow management to concentrate on KFC and Taco Bell, which are seen as the company’s main growth drivers. Yum! Brands set to sell Pizza Hut business
• Positive Sentiment: The company also approved a $4 billion share repurchase authorization, which could support earnings per share and signals confidence in the stock’s value. Yum! Brands To Sell Pizza Hut In $2.7 Bln Deal, Plans $4 Bln Buyback; Shares Up
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts are split on the move: some say it removes a long-running overhang, while others argue valuation still limits near-term upside. Hold Rating Maintained on Yum! Brands as Pizza Hut Divestiture Clears Overhang but Valuation Caps Near-Term Upside
• Negative Sentiment: The sale also underscores Pizza Hut’s weak performance, with slower demand and tougher competition making the brand a drag on the broader portfolio. Yum Brands to sell Pizza Hut for $2.7 billion

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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