Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) Given New $165.00 Price Target at Guggenheim

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) had its price target hoisted by Guggenheim from $155.00 to $165.00 in a research report report published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. Guggenheim currently has a buy rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Yum! Brands from $140.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $140.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays upped their target price on Yum! Brands from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, TD Securities reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $164.00 price objective on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Yum! Brands currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $152.24.

Yum! Brands Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of YUM opened at $141.32 on Tuesday. Yum! Brands has a 52-week low of $122.13 and a 52-week high of $163.30. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $150.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $139.71. The company has a market capitalization of $39.44 billion, a PE ratio of 27.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.90.

Yum! Brands Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were given a $0.71 dividend. This is a positive change from Yum! Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. Yum! Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.41%.

Insider Transactions at Yum! Brands

In other news, VP David Eric Russell sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.66, for a total value of $793,300.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 11,960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,897,573.60. This trade represents a 29.48 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO David W. Gibbs sold 5,293 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.24, for a total value of $816,392.32. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 157,893 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,353,416.32. This represents a 3.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 50,132 shares of company stock worth $7,952,685 in the last three months. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Yum! Brands

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the third quarter worth about $42,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its holdings in Yum! Brands by 455.3% during the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 14,149 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,977,000 after purchasing an additional 11,601 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Yum! Brands by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 13,727 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,918,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 42.3% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 131,779 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $18,411,000 after purchasing an additional 39,171 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC grew its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 2.1% during the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 35,519 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $4,962,000 after buying an additional 718 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.37% of the company’s stock.

About Yum! Brands

Yum! Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, develops, operates, and franchises quick service restaurants worldwide. The company operates through the KFC Division, the Taco Bell Division, the Pizza Hut Division, and the Habit Burger Grill Division segments. It also operates restaurants under the KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and The Habit Burger Grill brands, which specialize in chicken, pizza, made-to-order chargrilled burgers, sandwiches, Mexican-style food categories, and other food products.