Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) Given New $158.00 Price Target at Piper Sandler

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) had its price objective raised by investment analysts at Piper Sandler from $157.00 to $158.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Piper Sandler’s target price points to a potential upside of 6.73% from the company’s previous close.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Yum! Brands from $162.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Morgan Stanley set a $165.00 price objective on Yum! Brands in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Yum! Brands from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $160.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Yum! Brands from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Yum! Brands presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $163.78.

Yum! Brands Stock Performance

YUM traded down $1.52 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $148.03. The company had a trading volume of 717,176 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,080,102. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $146.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $146.16. Yum! Brands has a twelve month low of $122.13 and a twelve month high of $163.30. The company has a market capitalization of $41.08 billion, a PE ratio of 29.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.72.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The restaurant operator reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.12. Yum! Brands had a negative return on equity of 21.01% and a net margin of 18.11%.The company had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.96 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.37 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Yum! Brands will post 5.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Yum! Brands

In related news, Director Weir Mirian M. Graddick sold 2,038 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.30, for a total transaction of $296,121.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,233 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $179,154.90. This represents a 62.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.59, for a total value of $41,962.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $267,795.45. This represents a 13.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 28,815 shares of company stock valued at $4,267,986. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Yum! Brands

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Yum! Brands by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,861 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,055,000 after purchasing an additional 583 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors bought a new position in Yum! Brands during the first quarter worth about $443,000. Penserra Capital Management LLC increased its position in Yum! Brands by 741.1% during the first quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 6,157 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $968,000 after buying an additional 5,425 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Yum! Brands by 1.2% in the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 256,961 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $40,435,000 after buying an additional 3,172 shares during the period. Finally, Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands in the first quarter valued at approximately $211,000. 82.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Yum! Brands Company Profile

Yum! Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, develops, operates, and franchises quick service restaurants worldwide. The company operates through the KFC Division, the Taco Bell Division, the Pizza Hut Division, and the Habit Burger Grill Division segments. It also operates restaurants under the KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and The Habit Burger Grill brands, which specialize in chicken, pizza, made-to-order chargrilled burgers, sandwiches, Mexican-style food categories, and other food products.