Lazard Asset Management LLC Sells 16,728 Shares of Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC)

Lazard Asset Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC - Free Report) by 4.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 354,244 shares of the company's stock after selling 16,728 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned 0.09% of Yum China worth $17,063,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GeoWealth Management LLC boosted its position in Yum China by 689.6% during the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 529 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 462 shares during the period. Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new stake in Yum China during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Graney & King LLC acquired a new stake in Yum China during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Yum China by 58.5% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 878 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 324 shares during the period. Finally, Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Yum China during the 4th quarter worth approximately $48,000. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Yum China

In other news, insider Jeff Kuai sold 3,900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.21, for a total transaction of $188,019.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 56,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,728,782.42. This represents a 6.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CTO Leila Zhang sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The shares were 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 $2,634,474.25. This represents a 7.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 45,152 shares of company stock worth $2,242,176 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on YUMC. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Yum China from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Daiwa America upgraded shares of Yum China to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $48.70.

Yum China Trading Down 0.9%

YUMC stock traded down $0.42 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $44.14. The stock had a trading volume of 3,019,623 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,940,800. The firm has a market cap of $16.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Yum China Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $28.50 and a 1-year high of $53.99. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $47.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $47.33.

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

Yum China Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 28th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 28th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. Yum China's payout ratio is 40.17%.

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.