Vontobel Holding Ltd. Buys 87,583 Shares of Yum China $YUMC

Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its position in Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) by 6.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,444,892 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 87,583 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. owned approximately 0.40% of Yum China worth $62,015,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Bell Investment Advisors Inc increased its stake in Yum China by 95.6% in the second quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 665 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. Marshall & Sullivan Inc. WA acquired a new position in shares of Yum China in the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new stake in shares of Yum China in the 2nd quarter valued at $45,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in Yum China by 26.7% during the 2nd quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,052 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 222 shares during the period. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Yum China by 76.3% during the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,070 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 463 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

YUMC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Yum China in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. CLSA restated an “outperform” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Yum China in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $55.00.

Insider Activity at Yum China

In other news, insider Warton Wang sold 8,187 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.28, for a total transaction of $395,268.36. Following the sale, the insider owned 46,847 shares in the company, valued at $2,261,773.16. This represents a 14.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Duoduo (Howard) Huang sold 4,888 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.10, for a total transaction of $235,112.80. Following the transaction, the insider owned 22,510 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,082,731. The trade was a 17.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 18,242 shares of company stock valued at $878,397. Insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Yum China Stock Performance

Shares of YUMC opened at $48.47 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.11, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.14. Yum China has a 12 month low of $41.00 and a 12 month high of $53.99. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $46.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $45.37. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.76. Yum China had a net margin of 7.81% and a return on equity of 14.08%. The firm had revenue of $3.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.20 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.77 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Yum China will post 2.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Yum China Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 2nd. Yum China’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.83%.

Yum China declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Friday, December 12th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 5.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Yum China Company Profile

Yum China Holdings, Inc operates as the largest quick-service restaurant company in China, through its ownership and franchising of brands such as KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell. The company’s core business encompasses full-service and fast?casual dining, takeout and delivery channels, as well as ancillary services including loyalty programs and digital ordering platforms. Yum China’s restaurants offer a diverse menu that adapts global brand concepts to local consumer preferences, featuring items such as soy?marinated chicken, customized pizzas and region?inspired side dishes.

In addition to its signature brands, Yum China has expanded its portfolio to include innovative concepts tailored to evolving market trends, such as plant?based offerings, self?service kiosks and mobile app integrations.