Allstate Corp Raises Stock Position in Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM

Allstate Corp grew its holdings in Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) by 107.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,892 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,318 shares during the period. Allstate Corp’s holdings in Yum! Brands were worth $3,009,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Augustine Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Yum! Brands by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,287 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $497,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co. grew its holdings in Yum! Brands by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co. now owns 3,589 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $543,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. grew its holdings in Yum! Brands by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. now owns 3,527 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $536,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Silverlake Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Yum! Brands by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Silverlake Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,428 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $216,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. grew its holdings in Yum! Brands by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 17,189 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,613,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. 82.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Yum! Brands Stock Down 1.4%

NYSE YUM opened at $151.90 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $156.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $155.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.87 billion, a PE ratio of 24.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.61. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a 12-month low of $137.33 and a 12-month high of $169.39.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.04 billion. Yum! Brands had a net margin of 20.48% and a negative return on equity of 23.51%. Yum! Brands’s quarterly revenue was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.30 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 6.77 EPS for the current year.

Yum! Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 27th will be 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 is Wednesday, May 27th. Yum! Brands’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.39%.

Insider Activity at Yum! Brands

In other news, CEO Sean Tresvant sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.68, for a total value of $464,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 3,140 shares in the company, valued at approximately $485,695.20. This represents a 48.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 277 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.48, for a total transaction of $44,452.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 483 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $77,511.84. This represents a 36.45% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 5,364 shares of company stock valued at $827,837 in the last 90 days. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

YUM has been the subject of several research reports. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Friday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley set a $180.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Yum! Brands from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Yum! Brands from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $165.00 target price on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $175.89.

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.