Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM Shares Acquired by Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) by 174.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 23,436 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,887 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Yum! Brands were worth $3,545,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of YUM. Wiser Advisor Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Yum! Brands in the third quarter worth about $28,000. Community Bank N.A. acquired a new position in shares of Yum! Brands in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Yum! Brands by 81.7% in the third quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 198 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. CNB Bank lifted its stake in shares of Yum! Brands by 833.3% in the third quarter. CNB Bank now owns 224 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Yum! Brands in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.37% of the company’s stock.

Yum! Brands Trading Up 1.1%

NYSE:YUM opened at $154.47 on Friday. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a 52 week low of $137.33 and a 52 week high of $169.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.57 billion, a PE ratio of 24.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.61. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $157.19 and a 200-day moving average of $155.46.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.11. Yum! Brands had a negative return on equity of 23.51% and a net margin of 20.48%.The business had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.30 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 6.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Yum! Brands Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 27th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 27th. Yum! Brands’s dividend payout ratio is 48.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on YUM. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $180.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $168.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Yum! Brands presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $176.22.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Tracy L. Skeans sold 1,837 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.00, for a total value of $279,224.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 3,497 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $531,544. This represents a 34.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Christopher Lee Turner sold 250 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.48, for a total value of $40,120.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 64,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,359,304.96. The trade was a 0.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 2,890 shares of company stock valued at $451,123 in the last three months. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.