Spartan Wealth Advisory Services LLC Invests $1.30 Million in Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM

Key Points

• Spartan Wealth Advisory Services opened a new position in Yum! Brands, buying 8,374 shares worth about $1.3 million in the first quarter.
• Wall Street sentiment remains constructive: analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus on YUM, with an average price target of $174.81. Several firms recently raised targets, and Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock to Overweight.
• Yum! Brands reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.50 versus $1.39 expected and revenue up 15.2% year over year. The company also paid a $0.75 quarterly dividend and authorized a $4 billion share repurchase program.

Spartan Wealth Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 8,374 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $1,302,000.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Steph & Co. boosted its stake in shares of 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 in the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Yum! Brands in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Wiser Advisor Group LLC acquired a new stake in Yum! Brands during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Jessup Wealth Management Inc purchased a new stake in Yum! Brands during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. 82.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on YUM. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Yum! Brands from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $177.00 target price on Yum! Brands in a report on Thursday, April 30th. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. Morgan Stanley raised Yum! Brands from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the company from $180.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Yum! Brands from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Yum! Brands presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $174.81.

More Yum! Brands News

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 Stock Performance

Yum! Brands stock opened at $147.71 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $40.71 billion, a PE ratio of 23.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.56. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $154.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $156.88. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a twelve month low of $137.33 and a twelve month high of $170.14.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.11. Yum! Brands had a net margin of 20.48% and a negative return on equity of 23.51%. The company had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.30 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 6.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Yum! Brands Dividend Announcement

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

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Yum! Brands

In other Yum! Brands news, CEO Sean Tresvant sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.68, for a total value of $464,040.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 3,140 shares of the company's stock, valued at $485,695.20. This represents a 48.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Aaron Powell sold 6,001 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total value of $962,680.42. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 12,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,925,521.26. This trade represents a 33.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 12,423 shares of company stock valued at $1,953,721 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

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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