Lazard Asset Management LLC Cuts Position in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC)

Lazard Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC - Free Report) by 4.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 354,244 shares of the company's stock after selling 16,728 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned about 0.09% of Yum China worth $17,063,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. William Blair Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Yum China in the fourth quarter valued at about $243,901,000. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Yum China by 138.5% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,558,050 shares of the company's stock valued at $412,241,000 after acquiring an additional 4,969,073 shares in the last quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Yum China in the fourth quarter worth about $203,179,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in Yum China in the fourth quarter worth $199,722,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in Yum China by 399.0% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,727,549 shares of the company's stock worth $179,556,000 after acquiring an additional 2,980,589 shares in the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Yum China

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

Yum China Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:YUMC traded up $0.25 during trading on Monday, reaching $44.46. The company's stock had a trading volume of 582,300 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,935,375. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.60 billion, a PE ratio of 19.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.27. Yum China Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $28.50 and a 12 month high of $53.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $47.23 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $47.37.

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

Yum China Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 28th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 28th. Yum China's payout ratio is currently 40.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on YUMC shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Yum China from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Daiwa America raised shares of Yum China to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $48.70.

Yum China Profile

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.