Brokerages Set Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) Price Target at $48.70

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) has been given an average rating of “Strong Buy” by the four analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $48.70.

Separately, Daiwa America upgraded shares of Yum China to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th.

Yum China Trading Up 0.6%

NYSE:YUMC opened at $45.96 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $17.06 billion, a PE ratio of 19.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.28. Yum China has a 52-week low of $28.50 and a 52-week high of $53.99. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $44.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $46.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.78 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $2.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.13 billion. Yum China had a net margin of 8.09% and a return on equity of 14.08%. Yum China’s revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.71 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Yum China will post 2.54 EPS for the current year.

Yum China Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 28th were given a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 28th. Yum China’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.17%.

Institutional Trading of Yum China

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Okabena Investment Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Yum China by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Okabena Investment Services Inc. now owns 50,003 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,603,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Yum China by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,726 shares of the company’s stock valued at $228,000 after buying an additional 261 shares during the period. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its stake in shares of Yum China by 5.0% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 5,555 shares of the company’s stock valued at $289,000 after buying an additional 263 shares in the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc boosted its stake in shares of Yum China by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 23,074 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,111,000 after buying an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Yum China by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 6,180 shares of the company’s stock worth $298,000 after acquiring an additional 276 shares during the period. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Yum China

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.