Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Citigroup Analyst Says

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) had its target price raised by analysts at Citigroup from $174.00 to $175.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Citigroup’s price objective points to a potential upside of 9.52% from the company’s current price.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $165.00 target price on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $177.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Thursday. Barclays set a $185.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Gordon Haskett raised shares of Yum! Brands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $175.83.

Yum! Brands Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of YUM traded down $0.05 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $159.79. The company had a trading volume of 945,643 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,861,638. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $159.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $154.42. The stock has a market cap of $44.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.80, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.66. Yum! Brands has a 52 week low of $137.33 and a 52 week high of $169.39.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.11. The company 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 18.98% and a negative return on equity of 22.42%. The company’s revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.30 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Yum! Brands will post 6.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Yum! Brands

In other Yum! Brands news, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 284 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.02, for a total transaction of $47,149.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher Lee Turner sold 242 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.02, for a total transaction of $40,176.84. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 65,297 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,840,607.94. The trade was a 0.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 14,138 shares of company stock valued at $2,289,990 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Steph & Co. boosted its stake in Yum! Brands by 107.5% during 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 during the period. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its stake in Yum! Brands by 679.2% during the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 187 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Yum! Brands during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Wiser Advisor Group LLC acquired a new position in Yum! Brands during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Community Bank N.A. acquired a new position in Yum! Brands during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. 82.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Yum! Brands News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat — Yum reported adjusted EPS of $1.50 and revenue of $2.06B, topping consensus and showing ~15% revenue growth year-over-year; the print and management commentary underpin the bullish case. Yum! Brands Reports First-Quarter Results
• Positive Sentiment: Taco Bell strength — Taco Bell delivered ~8% same-store sales growth and was highlighted on the call as the primary driver of the beat, supporting near-term top-line momentum. Yum Brands earnings top estimates, fueled by Taco Bell
• Positive Sentiment: Digital and margin mix — Digital sales approached $11B and made up a record ~63% of system sales, highlighting durable digital adoption that can support margins and AUVs. Yum! Brands Q1 2026 profit jumps 71% to $432m
• Positive Sentiment: Franchise expansion — Company opened more than 1,000 units to start fiscal 2026, supporting medium-term system sales growth and franchising economics. Yum! Brands Opens More Than 1,000 Units
• Positive Sentiment: Innovation pipeline — Management highlighted AI-driven menu board tests and beverage initiatives as levers to boost check and guest frequency, a potential multi-quarter growth catalyst if adopted broadly. Yum Brands wants AI and beverages to supercharge growth
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst action mixed — Wells Fargo nudged its price target to $165 from $160 but kept an “equal weight” rating, signaling modest upside but continued analyst caution. Wells Fargo raises Yum! Brands price target
• Neutral Sentiment: Call/transcript coverage — Multiple transcripts and summaries are available; they emphasize Taco Bell leadership while noting operational detail across brands. Useful for modeling but not immediate price-moving by itself. Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Mixed brand performance and capital efficiency metrics — Pizza Hut and some other regions lagged, and the company reported a negative return on equity figure in filings, highlighting uneven contribution and ongoing capital structure considerations. Yum! Brands earnings/metrics summary

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.