Yum! Brands (YUM) Stock Rating Upgraded by Edward Jones

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) was upgraded by Edward Jones from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Friday.

YUM has been the subject of a number of other reports. Nomura raised their price objective on shares of Yum! Brands from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 3rd. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of Yum! Brands from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 24th. Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Monday, October 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $88.00 price target for the company. UBS Group reissued a “positive” rating and set a $89.00 price target (up from $83.00) on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Friday, November 3rd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Yum! Brands from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 18th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Yum! Brands currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $81.68.

Yum! Brands (YUM) traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $85.69. 203,293 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,480,664. The company has a market cap of $28,725.37, a P/E ratio of 26.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.89. Yum! Brands has a one year low of $62.85 and a one year high of $86.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of -1.55.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 2nd. The restaurant operator reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.39 billion. Yum! Brands had a net margin of 18.51% and a negative return on equity of 17.19%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.09 EPS. equities research analysts predict that Yum! Brands will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Yum! Brands announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Friday, November 17th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

In other Yum! Brands news, CEO Brian R. Niccol sold 927 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.46, for a total value of $77,367.42. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO David W. Gibbs sold 4,318 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.56, for a total transaction of $347,858.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 39,396 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,173,741.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,231 shares of company stock valued at $997,604 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 7.38% of the company’s stock.

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $117,000. Cerebellum GP LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the 4th quarter worth approximately $140,000. Americafirst Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 107.6% during the 3rd quarter. Americafirst Capital Management LLC now owns 2,392 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $176,000 after buying an additional 1,240 shares during the period. Sun Life Financial INC grew its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 19,991.7% during the 2nd quarter. Sun Life Financial INC now owns 2,411 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $178,000 after buying an additional 2,399 shares during the period. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $190,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.70% of the company’s stock.

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About Yum! Brands

YUM! Brands, Inc is engaged in restaurant business. As of December 31, 2016, the Company operated or franchised over 43,500 restaurants in more than 135 countries and territories operating under the KFC, Pizza Hut or Taco Bell (collectively the Concepts) brands. The Company operates through three segments: The KFC Division, which includes the operations of the KFC concept around the world; The Pizza Hut Division, which includes the operations of the Pizza Hut concept around the world, and The Taco Bell Division, which includes the operations of the Taco Bell concept around the world.