Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM Stake Lifted by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its stake in Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) by 15.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 123,834 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,265 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Yum! Brands were worth $18,734,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in YUM. Wiser Advisor Group LLC bought a new stake in Yum! Brands during the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Community Bank N.A. bought a new stake in Yum! Brands during the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Yum! Brands during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in Yum! Brands during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Caitlin John LLC bought a new stake in Yum! Brands during the third quarter worth approximately $44,000. 82.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Yum! Brands news, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 261 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.14, for a total value of $38,664.54. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 483 shares in the company, valued at $71,551.62. This represents a 35.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Tracy L. Skeans sold 1,837 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.00, for a total transaction of $279,224.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 3,497 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $531,544. The trade was a 34.44% 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 a total of 5,895 shares of company stock worth $906,499 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Yum! Brands Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:YUM opened at $151.47 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $41.75 billion, a PE ratio of 24.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.57. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a 52 week low of $137.33 and a 52 week high of $169.39. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $155.03 and a 200 day simple moving average of $155.68.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.30 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 6.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Yum! Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 27th will be given a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 27th. Yum! Brands’s dividend payout ratio is 48.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on YUM. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $177.00 target price on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Yum! Brands from $174.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Friday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Yum! Brands from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Yum! Brands from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $176.12.

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.