Vontobel Holding Ltd. Lowers Position in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. cut its holdings in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC) by 21.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 143,760 shares of the company’s stock after selling 40,072 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Yum China were worth $6,100,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Yum China by 116.8% during the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 464 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Yum China in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Yum China in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Yum China in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Yum China in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. 85.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Yum China Price Performance

Yum China stock opened at $36.85 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $40.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $42.58. Yum China Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $33.55 and a 1 year high of $64.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.42.

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.13 by $0.12. Yum China had a net margin of 7.53% and a return on equity of 11.63%. The firm had revenue of $2.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.32 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.13 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Yum China Holdings, Inc. will post 2.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Yum China Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 5th were issued a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 4th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. This is a positive change from Yum China’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. Yum China’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.65%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $38.00 price target (down previously from $65.00) on shares of Yum China in a report on Thursday, January 4th. HSBC cut their price target on shares of Yum China from $66.80 to $51.30 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $54.65.

Yum China Company Profile

Yum China Holdings, Inc owns, operates, and franchises restaurants in the People's Republic of China. The company operates through KFC, Pizza Hut, and All Other segments. It operates restaurants under the KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, Lavazza, Little Sheep, and Huang Ji Huang concepts. The company also operates V-Gold Mall, a mobile e-commerce platform to sell products; and offers online food deliver services.