Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) Hits New 12-Month Low Following Weak Earnings

Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as low as $42.38 and last traded at $42.53, with a volume of 1942280 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $52.56.

The company reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $2.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.12 billion. Yum China had a net margin of 7.20% and a return on equity of 10.39%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.49 earnings per share.

Yum China Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 27th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.17%. Yum China’s payout ratio is presently 29.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on YUMC shares. StockNews.com lowered Yum China from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. HSBC increased their price target on Yum China from $77.90 to $79.20 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Yum China from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $65.78 to $71.30 in a report on Thursday, September 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $75.25.

Institutional Trading of Yum China

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in Yum China by 3.2% in the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 5,774 shares of the company’s stock worth $366,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. Concord Wealth Partners increased its stake in Yum China by 11.6% in the second quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 1,735 shares of the company’s stock worth $98,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Yum China by 1.2% in the second quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 15,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $865,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management increased its stake in Yum China by 9.2% in the first quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 2,295 shares of the company’s stock worth $145,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the period. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Yum China by 2.6% in the third quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,576 shares of the company’s stock worth $422,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.91% of the company’s stock.

Yum China Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $53.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $56.91. The firm has a market cap of $18.54 billion, a PE ratio of 25.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.54.

Yum China Company Profile

Yum China Holdings, Inc owns, operates, and franchises restaurants in the People's Republic of China. The company operates through KFC, Pizza Hut, and All Other segments. It operates restaurants under the KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, Lavazza, Little Sheep, and Huang Ji Huang concepts. The company also operates V-Gold Mall, a mobile e-commerce platform, which sells electronics, home and kitchen accessories, and other general merchandise, as well as fried rice, steak, and pasta; and offers online food deliver services.