Econ Financial Services Corp Takes $2.34 Million Position in Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM

Econ Financial Services Corp bought a new position in shares of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 15,473 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $2,341,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of YUM. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its position in Yum! Brands by 679.2% during the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 187 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Wiser Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Yum! Brands in the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Community Bank N.A. bought a new position in shares of Yum! Brands in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Yum! Brands by 81.7% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 198 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. Finally, CNB Bank boosted its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 833.3% during the 3rd quarter. CNB Bank now owns 224 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.37% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Yum! Brands

In other Yum! Brands news, CEO Christopher Lee Turner sold 242 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.02, for a total transaction of $40,176.84. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 65,297 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,840,607.94. This represents a 0.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Aaron Powell sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.44, for a total transaction of $1,937,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 14,650 shares in the company, valued at $2,365,096. This trade represents a 45.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 14,138 shares of company stock valued at $2,289,990. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Yum! Brands from $165.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a “positive” rating on shares of Yum! Brands in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $179.00 target price on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $174.50.

Yum! Brands Price Performance

Shares of Yum! Brands stock opened at $155.57 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $159.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $152.91. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a one year low of $137.33 and a one year high of $169.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.03, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.64.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The restaurant operator reported $1.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.76 by ($0.03). Yum! Brands had a negative return on equity of 22.42% and a net margin of 18.98%.The firm had revenue of $2.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.45 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.61 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 5.94 EPS for the current year.

Yum! Brands Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Investors of record on Friday, February 20th were issued a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 20th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. This is an increase from Yum! Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. Yum! Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.05%.

Yum! Brands News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: High-profile endorsement — Jim Cramer called YUM “come down to a very attractive price,” highlighting the company’s growth, asset-light model and valuation; that kind of media endorsement can spur retail buying and short-term momentum. Jim Cramer Believes Yum! Brands “Has Come Down to a Very Attractive Price”
• Positive Sentiment: Operational catalyst — KFC (a Yum brand) launched Value Feast Boxes at $7/$9/$11, a clear value push designed to drive transactions and comp growth during price-sensitive periods; strong traffic lift from a value rollout can boost same-store sales and franchisee royalties. KFC mimics Taco Bell in latest value play
• Positive Sentiment: Network expansion in Australia — Reports say Collins Foods will transfer 20 Taco Bell outlets to Yum Brands, expanding Yum’s direct footprint/oversight in a growth market and potentially improving unit economics and royalty revenue in that region. Australia’s Collins Foods to transfer 20 Taco Bell outlets to Yum Brands
• Neutral Sentiment: Talent movement in quick‑service industry — Jack in the Box named former Yum marketing executive Katelyn Zborowski as CMO; this highlights Yum’s bench of marketing talent but is unlikely to be a material near-term driver for YUM’s results. Jack in the Box names Yum Brands veteran Katelyn Zborowski chief marketing officer
• Negative Sentiment: Sector stress signal — a regional pizza franchisee filed Chapter 11, underscoring continued pressure and overcapacity in parts of the pizza/fast-casual segment; broader weaker franchisee economics or aggressive value wars could pressure Yum’s margins if the promotion cadence intensifies. Popular pizza chain franchisee files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy

Yum! Brands Profile

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.