TD Cowen Reiterates Buy Rating for Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM)

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reiterated by TD Cowen in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $180.00 price objective on the restaurant operator’s stock. TD Cowen’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 13.05% from the company’s previous close.

YUM has been the subject of a number of other reports. Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Yum! Brands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Yum! Brands from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $160.00 price target on Yum! Brands in a report on Monday, November 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $177.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on Yum! Brands in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $165.00 target price for the company. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $171.70.

Yum! Brands Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of YUM opened at $159.22 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $152.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $148.91. Yum! Brands has a 52 week low of $129.55 and a 52 week high of $163.30. The stock has a market cap of $44.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.04, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.66.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The restaurant operator reported $1.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $2.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.45 billion. Yum! Brands had a net margin of 17.95% and a negative return on equity of 21.79%. The company’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.61 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Yum! Brands will post 5.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Yum! Brands

In other news, COO Tracy L. Skeans sold 24,332 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.10, for a total transaction of $3,627,901.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 276 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.17, for a total transaction of $42,274.92. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 27,398 shares of company stock valued at $4,090,015. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Yum! Brands

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of YUM. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,861 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,055,000 after buying an additional 583 shares in the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Yum! Brands in the second quarter worth about $107,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS increased its stake in Yum! Brands by 36.0% during the second quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 135,248 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $20,041,000 after acquiring an additional 35,800 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Yum! Brands by 7.0% during the second quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,393 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $355,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the period. Finally, Valmark Advisers Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Yum! Brands by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 1,915 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $284,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.37% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Yum! Brands

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

• Positive Sentiment: Taco Bell and KFC drove revenue and same‑store sales strength, helping Yum beat top‑line expectations — evidence that core brand momentum can offset weaker areas of the portfolio. Yum Brands tops same-store sales estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Yum increased its quarterly dividend (to $0.75/share), signaling management confidence and boosting income investor appeal; the raise and yield support the stock’s valuation case. Yum hikes dividend despite margin squeeze
• Positive Sentiment: At least one Wall Street shop (TD Cowen) kept a Buy rating, citing Taco Bell momentum, core growth outlook and a potential re‑rating after any Pizza Hut disposition — analyst support can underpin near‑term buying. Buy rating driven by Taco Bell momentum
• Neutral Sentiment: Overall Q4 results were mixed — revenue beat estimates and system sales grew, but non‑GAAP EPS missed by a small amount; investors are parsing growth quality vs. margin trends. Yum Q4 earnings and call materials
• Neutral Sentiment: Company reported double‑digit profit growth in the quarter (helpful context for longer‑term earnings power) but some metrics (return on equity/margins) remain under pressure. Yum posts double-digit profit growth
• Negative Sentiment: Yum plans to close ~250 underperforming Pizza Hut U.S. locations in H1 2026 and is conducting a strategic review of the brand — this creates near‑term earnings disruption, brand uncertainty and raises the possibility of an asset sale that could compress segment revenue until resolved. Yum to close 250 Pizza Hut stores
• Negative Sentiment: Margins are under pressure (analysts flagged a margin squeeze) and insiders sold stock before the release, which some investors view as a cautionary signal; these elements increase short‑term downside risk if Pizza Hut weakness persists. Insiders sold YUM stock

About Yum! Brands

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.