OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp Makes New $3.26 Million Investment in Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM

OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp bought a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 20,406 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $3,262,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in YUM. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Yum! Brands in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,186,811,000. Capital International Investors boosted its position in Yum! Brands by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 19,419,826 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,938,139,000 after purchasing an additional 3,240,190 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its position in Yum! Brands by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,164,814 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,991,573,000 after purchasing an additional 124,720 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Yum! Brands by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,800,382 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,334,427,000 after purchasing an additional 121,304 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Yum! Brands during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $706,799,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.37% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Yum! Brands

In other Yum! Brands news, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 268 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.15, for a total value of $41,044.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 483 shares in the company, valued at approximately $73,971.45. This trade represents a 35.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Tracy L. Skeans sold 3,494 shares of Yum! Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.00, for a total value of $552,052.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 3 shares in the company, valued at $474. The trade was a 99.91% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 19,043 shares of company stock valued at $2,978,180 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Yum! Brands Price Performance

Shares of Yum! Brands stock opened at $156.55 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $42.72 billion, a PE ratio of 19.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.55. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $153.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $155.95. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $137.33 and a fifty-two week high of $170.14.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The restaurant operator reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.18 billion. Yum! Brands had a net margin of 25.42% and a negative return on equity of 24.57%. The business’s revenue was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.44 EPS. Analysts expect that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 6.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Yum! Brands declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, June 16th that permits the company to repurchase $4.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the restaurant operator to purchase up to 9.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Yum! Brands News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Pizza Hut is launching a major football-season promotion with Pepsi and Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen, including new advertising, promotional giveaways and value-oriented menu offers. The campaign could support traffic and sales during a key promotional period. Pizza Hut Teams Up With Pepsi and Josh Allen
• Positive Sentiment: KFC introduced its Hot Ranch Big Dip and Double Crispy Hot Wings nationwide, supported by a marketing partnership with streamer IShowSpeed. New products and high-profile promotions may help KFC maintain customer engagement and boost near-term demand. KFC Debuts New Hot Ranch Big Dip
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor commentary is assessing the implications of Yum!’s Pizza Hut sale and its effect on the company’s portfolio and growth strategy. The reports provide perspective but do not disclose new transaction terms or a fresh operating forecast. What Does the Pizza Hut Sale Mean for Yum! Brands?
• Negative Sentiment: Pomerantz LLP said it is investigating potential claims on behalf of Yum! Brands investors. The announcement may increase uncertainty and headline risk, although it does not itself establish wrongdoing or indicate the likely financial outcome. Pomerantz Investor Alert
• Negative Sentiment: COO Tracy Skeans sold 3,494 YUM shares worth approximately $552,000. The transaction reduced her direct holdings to three shares, which can be viewed negatively; however, it was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan, reducing its significance as a discretionary signal. SEC Insider Trading Filing

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on YUM. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Yum! Brands from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Yum! Brands from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $180.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Yum! Brands from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Yum! Brands from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $174.65.

Yum! Brands Company 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.