Q3 EPS Estimates for Yum! Brands Reduced by Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research cut Yum! Brands’ Q3 2026 EPS estimate to $1.57 from $1.69. Analysts forecast full-year 2026 EPS of $6.47, versus the current-year consensus estimate of $6.42.
• Yum! Brands recently reported quarterly EPS of $1.62, beating estimates by $0.04, while revenue rose 12.2% year over year to $2.17 billion, slightly below forecasts.
• The stock opened at $148.21, below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages. Despite mixed analyst views, the consensus rating remains “Moderate Buy,” and the company authorized a $4 billion share repurchase program covering up to 9.4% of shares.

Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM - Free Report) - Equities research analysts at Zacks Research decreased their Q3 2026 earnings estimates for shares of Yum! Brands in a research note issued on Thursday, August 13th. Zacks Research analyst Team now expects that the restaurant operator will earn $1.57 per share for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $1.69. The consensus estimate for Yum! Brands' current full-year earnings is $6.42 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Yum! Brands' FY2026 earnings at $6.47 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $1.43 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $1.77 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $6.90 EPS, Q1 2028 earnings at $1.63 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $7.70 EPS.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on YUM. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Yum! Brands from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $180.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. BMO Capital Markets restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $168.00 target price on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Yum! Brands from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Yum! Brands has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $174.31.

Yum! Brands Trading Up 0.1%

Yum! Brands stock opened at $148.21 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.64, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.55. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $153.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $156.22. Yum! Brands has a 52 week low of $137.33 and a 52 week high of $170.14.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The restaurant operator reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.04. The company 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%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.44 EPS.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of YUM. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Yum! Brands in the second quarter valued at about $4,186,811,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands in the fourth quarter worth about $706,799,000. Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of Yum! Brands by 20.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 19,419,826 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $2,938,139,000 after buying an additional 3,240,190 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands in the second quarter valued at about $297,591,000. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the 4th quarter valued at about $272,794,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.37% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Aaron Powell sold 6,001 shares of Yum! Brands 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 12,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,925,521.26. The trade was a 33.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 268 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.15, for a total value of $41,044.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 483 shares of the company's stock, valued at $73,971.45. The trade was a 35.69% 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 have sold 18,549 shares of company stock valued at $2,890,168 in the last 90 days. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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

Yum! Brands Company Profile

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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