Evolve Private Wealth LLC Makes New Investment in Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM

Key Points

• Evolve Private Wealth LLC purchased 7,046 shares of Yum! Brands in the second quarter, valued at approximately $1.13 million. Institutional investors collectively own 82.37% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive view, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $174.65. Yum! recently exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $1.62 versus the $1.58 consensus, while revenue rose 12.2% year over year.
• Yum! approved a $4 billion share-repurchase program, covering up to 9.4% of outstanding shares, though recent insider sales and uncertainty surrounding a CEO transition may weigh on investor sentiment.

Evolve Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 7,046 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $1,126,000.

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

Insider Transactions at Yum! Brands

In other news, CEO Christopher Lee Turner sold 261 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.15, for a total transaction of $39,972.15. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 63,771 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,766,528.65. This represents a 0.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal 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, VP David Eric Russell sold 7,961 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.15, for a total value of $1,219,227.15. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 11,960 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,831,674. This represents a 39.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 18,549 shares of company stock valued at $2,890,168. 0.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on YUM. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Yum! Brands from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $174.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Friday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Yum! Brands from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $168.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Monday, May 4th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $174.65.

Key Headlines Impacting Yum! Brands

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

• Positive Sentiment: Yum! Brands outlined a renewed consumer-growth strategy centered on strengthening brand engagement, digital capabilities, loyalty programs and operational execution across KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut. The emphasis on personalized customer experiences and technology could support sales and franchisee performance. Yum! Brands Reveals New Path for Consumer Growth
• Positive Sentiment: The company appointed former HanesBrands CEO Steve Bratspies to its board, effective August 26. His experience managing global consumer brands and improving operations may add expertise as Yum! pursues growth and evaluates its portfolio. Yum! Brands Appoints Steve Bratspies to Board
• Neutral Sentiment: Pizza Hut is using a football-themed branding promotion ahead of the NFL season. The marketing effort could increase near-term visibility, but it comes as Yum! advances the multibillion-dollar sale of the chain, making the strategic implications more important than the promotion itself. Pizza Hut Branding Change
• Negative Sentiment: Shares faced pressure after Yum! announced a new chief executive officer. Although a leadership change could bring fresh momentum, investors may be concerned about execution risk and the direction of the company during the transition. Yum! Brands Slides on Naming New CEO
• Negative Sentiment: An insider reportedly reduced a Yum! Brands equity stake by 28%, while executive share withholding related to restricted-stock-unit vesting was also disclosed. These transactions are not necessarily signals of deteriorating fundamentals, but they can weigh on sentiment. Yum! Brands Insider Sale
• Negative Sentiment: Pomerantz LLP said it is investigating potential claims on behalf of Yum! investors. The announcement does not establish wrongdoing, but it adds legal and reputational uncertainty to the stock. Pomerantz Investor Investigation

Yum! Brands Price Performance

Yum! Brands stock opened at $153.31 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $41.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.28, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.55. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a 1 year low of $137.33 and a 1 year high of $170.14. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $153.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $155.98.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The restaurant operator reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $2.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.18 billion. Yum! Brands had a net margin of 25.42% and a negative return on equity of 24.57%. Yum! Brands's revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.44 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 6.42 EPS for the current year.

Yum! Brands declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, June 16th that allows the company to repurchase $4.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the restaurant operator to repurchase up to 9.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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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