Bleakley Financial Group LLC Invests $1.59 Million in Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM

Bleakley Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 10,221 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $1,589,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Steph & Co. raised its holdings in Yum! Brands by 107.5% in the first quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 166 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Wiser Advisor Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Yum! Brands in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Jessup Wealth Management Inc purchased a new position in shares of Yum! Brands in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 82.37% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on YUM shares. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Yum! Brands from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Yum! Brands from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Sunday. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $177.00 target price on Yum! Brands in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Yum! Brands has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $174.81.

Yum! Brands News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Yum! Brands this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts are still looking ahead to Yum! Brands’ upcoming quarterly results, with expectations for low-double-digit bottom-line improvement, which could help offset some of the outbreak-related pressure. What to Expect From Yum! Brands’ Next Quarterly Earnings Report
• Neutral Sentiment: Yum’s Taco Bell reportedly removed select items from some restaurants as a precaution while officials investigate the outbreak; the company says it has ruled out any confirmed connection so far. Yum’s Taco Bell removes select items, says no confirmed link to U.S. cyclosporiasis outbreak
• Negative Sentiment: Reuters reported that Taco Bell lettuce supplied by Taylor Farms has been identified by investigators as a potential source of the cyclosporiasis outbreak, increasing reputational and legal risk for Yum! Brands. Taco Bell lettuce supplied by Taylor Farms linked to US cyclosporiasis outbreak, Washington Post reports
• Negative Sentiment: YUM stock has also been hit by broader outbreak-related headlines and investor concern that the issue could hurt traffic at Taco Bell and pressure near-term sentiment. Is Yum! Brands (YUM) Below Fair Value As Cyclospora Headlines Weigh On Sentiment?

Yum! Brands Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of Yum! Brands stock opened at $152.10 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.53, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.56. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a 12-month low of $137.33 and a 12-month high of $170.14. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $154.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $156.91.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $2.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.04 billion. Yum! Brands had a negative return on equity of 23.51% and a net margin of 20.48%.The firm’s revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.30 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 6.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Yum! Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 27th. Yum! Brands’s payout ratio is presently 48.39%.

Yum! Brands declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, June 16th that authorizes the company to repurchase $4.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to buy up to 9.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 277 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.48, for a total value of $44,452.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 483 shares in the company, valued at $77,511.84. This trade represents a 36.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed 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 270 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.14, for a total value of $39,997.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 64,282 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,522,735.48. The trade was a 0.42% 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. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,423 shares of company stock valued at $1,953,721. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

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.