Kingsview Wealth Management LLC Takes Position in Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM

Key Points

• Kingsview Wealth Management acquired 12,979 Yum! Brands shares worth approximately $2.08 million during the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 82.37% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $174.65, despite some target-price reductions.
• Yum! Brands exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reported 12.2% year-over-year revenue growth, authorized a $4 billion share buyback, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.75 per share.

Kingsview Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 12,979 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $2,075,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of YUM. Steph & Co. increased its holdings in Yum! Brands by 107.5% during the 1st quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 166 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the period. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. bought a new position in Yum! Brands in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Yum! Brands during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Yum! Brands during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Wiser Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Yum! Brands in the third quarter worth $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.37% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Yum! Brands news, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 277 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total value of $44,436.34. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 483 shares of the company's stock, valued at $77,482.86. This trade represents a 36.45% 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, CEO Aaron Powell sold 6,001 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total transaction of $962,680.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 12,003 shares in the company, valued at $1,925,521.26. The trade was a 33.33% 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 19,043 shares of company stock valued at $2,978,180 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "hold" rating and issued a $174.00 target price on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley upgraded Yum! Brands from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $180.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Robert W. Baird raised Yum! Brands to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Yum! Brands from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $174.65.

Yum! Brands Trading Up 2.2%

NYSE YUM opened at $154.08 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $42.05 billion, a PE ratio of 19.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 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 stock has a 50-day moving average of $153.48 and a 200-day moving average of $155.81.

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

Yum! Brands announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback 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 purchase up to 9.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Yum! Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 9th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Yum! Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.74%.

About Yum! Brands

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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