Wells Fargo & Company Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) Stock

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) had its price target boosted by equities research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $160.00 to $165.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “equal weight” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 4.32% from the company’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on YUM. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Yum! Brands from $180.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Yum! Brands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Barclays set a $185.00 target price on shares of Yum! Brands and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $176.06.

Yum! Brands Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE YUM opened at $158.17 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $43.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.61. Yum! Brands has a 1-year low of $137.33 and a 1-year high of $169.39. The business’s 50 day moving average is $159.77 and its 200-day moving average is $154.46.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $2.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.04 billion. Yum! Brands had a negative return on equity of 23.51% and a net margin of 20.48%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.30 EPS. Analysts forecast that Yum! Brands will post 6.73 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Yum! Brands news, CEO Christopher Lee Turner sold 250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.48, for a total value of $40,120.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 64,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,359,304.96. This trade represents a 0.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a 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, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 277 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.48, for a total transaction of $44,452.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 483 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $77,511.84. The trade was a 36.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 14,665 shares of company stock worth $2,374,563 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Yum! Brands

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in YUM. Steph & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Yum! Brands by 107.5% in the 1st quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 166 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Yum! Brands during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Wiser Advisor Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its stake in Yum! Brands by 679.2% in the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 187 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. 82.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Yum! Brands News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat and margin upside — Yum reported Q1 EPS of $1.50 (above estimates) with revenue up ~15% and a large profit jump; digital sales reached a record (~63% of system sales), supporting better-than-expected fundamentals. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Taco Bell strength and improving visibility — Analysts (Morgan Stanley coverage cited) highlight Taco Bell’s continued comp strength and loyalty/digital engagement gains as drivers of near-term visibility and growth. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: KFC global expansion and delivery gains — Management and industry write-ups point to KFC fueling international growth, helping the company’s top-line and margin mix. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst price-target moves are modestly supportive but ratings remain conservative — Citi and Wells Fargo raised price targets slightly but maintain neutral/equal-weight ratings, limiting immediate bullish catalyst strength. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider sales executed under 10b5?1 plans — CEO Scott Mezvinsky and CEO Christopher Lee Turner sold shares (pre-arranged plans); such filings can create near-term selling pressure but are less informative about company fundamentals. Read More. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Pizza Hut lagging — Coverage highlights Pizza Hut’s continued underperformance, which can blunt overall company upside and keep investors cautious until a clearer turnaround is visible. Read More.

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.