Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) Stock Price Target Raised at TD Cowen

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) had its target price lifted by equities researchers at TD Cowen from $177.00 to $180.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. TD Cowen‘s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 13.45% from the company’s current price.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on YUM. Guggenheim lowered their price target on shares of Yum! Brands from $180.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Yum! Brands from $160.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Yum! Brands from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Yum! Brands from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on Yum! Brands from $191.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $171.78.

Yum! Brands Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:YUM traded up $1.06 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $158.66. 1,808,520 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,175,127. The stock has a market cap of $43.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.96, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.55. Yum! Brands has a twelve month low of $134.26 and a twelve month high of $170.14. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $146.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $153.48.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The restaurant operator reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $2.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.05 billion. Yum! Brands had a net margin of 25.42% and a negative return on equity of 24.57%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.58 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Yum! Brands will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Yum! Brands news, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 241 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.89, for a total value of $32,990.49. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 482 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $65,980.98. This represents a 33.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Christopher Turner sold 285 shares of Yum! Brands stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.11, for a total transaction of $39,931.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 63,225 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,858,454.75. This trade represents a 0.45% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 4,288 shares of company stock worth $666,149 in the last three months. 0.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Yum! Brands

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Harrell Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Harrell Investment Partners LLC now owns 4,235 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $677,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Yum! Brands by 44.6% during the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 227 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Yum! Brands by 3.5% during the first quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. now owns 2,108 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $311,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the period. GSG Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Yum! Brands by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. GSG Advisors LLC now owns 1,511 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $235,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cidel Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Yum! Brands by 5.5% in the 2nd quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,484 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $237,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. 82.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Yum! Brands

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

• Positive Sentiment: Yum! Brands reported third-quarter adjusted EPS of $1.56, above the $1.47 analyst consensus. Revenue rose 3.8% year over year to approximately $2.05 billion, broadly in line with expectations. Yum Brands Surpasses Q3 Earnings Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: KFC’s global expansion helped offset weakness elsewhere, supporting system sales and reinforcing the value of Yum’s international franchise portfolio. Management also said Taco Bell trends have improved since late September. Yum Brands earnings beat estimates, but cyclospora outbreak weighs on Taco Bell
• Positive Sentiment: Management is emphasizing digital technology, value menus and customer-retention efforts as consumers face higher fuel and household costs. These initiatives could help protect traffic and spending. Yum Brands Focuses on Technology Adoption and Customer Retention
• Neutral Sentiment: Yum completed Pizza Hut divestitures and recorded a reported gain of roughly $1.7 billion. The transaction strengthens the balance sheet but is a one-time benefit rather than recurring operating growth. Yum Brands Reports Third-Quarter Results and Pizza Hut Divestiture Gain
• Negative Sentiment: Taco Bell same-store sales fell more than expected after a cyclospora outbreak linked to lettuce reduced traffic. The issue weighed on revenue quality and remains the primary near-term concern for YUM. Taco Bell Sales Fall More Than Expected on Cyclosporiasis Outbreak Hit
• Negative Sentiment: All KFC and Taco Bell locations in Puerto Rico temporarily closed after Yum ended its relationship with a local operator, creating a short-term sales and execution risk while a replacement franchise partner is sought. KFC and Taco Bell Restaurants Close Across Puerto Rico

Yum! Brands Company Profile

Yum! Brands, Inc is a global restaurant company that operates, franchises and licenses quick-service and fast-casual restaurants. Its principal brands are KFC, which specializes in fried and other chicken products; Taco Bell, which offers Mexican-inspired food; Pizza Hut, which sells pizzas and related menu items; and The Habit Burger Grill, a fast-casual burger restaurant chain.

The company’s business is primarily franchise-based, with restaurants operated by independent franchisees and licensees alongside company-operated locations.