Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC) Shares Sold by WBI Investments LLC

WBI Investments LLC lowered its holdings in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC - Free Report) by 29.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 26,365 shares of the company's stock after selling 10,924 shares during the quarter. WBI Investments LLC's holdings in Yum China were worth $1,270,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its position in Yum China by 16.6% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 56,896 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,794,000 after buying an additional 8,101 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Yum China during the fourth quarter valued at $31,836,000. AXA S.A. lifted its holdings in Yum China by 34.4% during the fourth quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 31,286 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,507,000 after purchasing an additional 8,016 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC purchased a new position in Yum China during the fourth quarter valued at $809,000. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Yum China during the fourth quarter valued at $322,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Yum China

In other news, CEO Joey Wat sold 37,252 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.71, for a total transaction of $1,851,796.92. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 382,657 shares in the company, valued at $19,021,879.47. This represents a 8.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CTO Leila Zhang sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.59, for a total transaction of $202,360.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now owns 52,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,634,474.25. The trade was a 7.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Yum China Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:YUMC traded down $0.25 during trading on Thursday, hitting $42.53. 1,774,566 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,940,490. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.25, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.15. Yum China Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $28.50 and a 12-month high of $53.99. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $46.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $47.27.

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.78 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $2.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.13 billion. Yum China had a net margin of 8.06% and a return on equity of 13.83%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.71 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Yum China Holdings, Inc. will post 2.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Yum China Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 28th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 28th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.26%. Yum China's payout ratio is 40.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on YUMC. Daiwa America raised shares of Yum China to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Yum China from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $48.70.

About Yum China

Yum China Holdings, Inc owns, operates, and franchises restaurants in the People's Republic of China. The company operates through KFC, Pizza Hut, and All Other segments. It operates restaurants under the KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, Lavazza, Little Sheep, and Huang Ji Huang concepts. The company also operates V-Gold Mall, a mobile e-commerce platform to sell products; and offers online food deliver services.