Machina Capital S.A.S. Lowers Stock Position in Yum! Brands, Inc. $YUM

Machina Capital S.A.S. lessened its stake in Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) by 29.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,323 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 3,894 shares during the period. Machina Capital S.A.S.’s holdings in Yum! Brands were worth $1,417,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in YUM. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in Yum! Brands by 8.0% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,861 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,055,000 after acquiring an additional 583 shares in the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Yum! Brands during the second quarter worth about $107,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS boosted its holdings in shares of Yum! Brands by 36.0% in the 2nd quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 135,248 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $20,041,000 after purchasing an additional 35,800 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 7.0% during the 2nd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,393 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $355,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lakeshore Capital Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 11.0% during the 2nd quarter. Lakeshore Capital Group Inc. now owns 4,012 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $594,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.37% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Yum! Brands

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

• Positive Sentiment: Taco Bell led the quarter with robust same‑store sales and system growth, helping Yum deliver revenue above expectations and underpinning confidence in the portfolio’s growth engine. KFC-parent Yum Brands tops same-store sales estimates as diners seek value meals
• Positive Sentiment: Yum raised its quarterly dividend to $0.75 (a ~5.6% increase), signaling management confidence and making the stock more attractive to income investors. Taco Bell, KFC Parent Yum! Brands Hikes Dividend Despite Margin Squeeze
• Neutral Sentiment: Top line beat: Q4 revenue of $2.51B topped estimates (revenue +6.4% YoY), showing demand and unit growth offsetting other headwinds — a mixed but important signal for continued sales momentum. Earnings Breakdown: Yum Brands Q4
• Negative Sentiment: EPS slightly missed expectations (non‑GAAP $1.73 vs. ~$1.76 consensus) and company commentary cited margin pressure at restaurants — a near-term profit/headline risk that trimmed investor enthusiasm. Yum Brands (YUM) Q4 Earnings Lag Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Pizza Hut continues to underperform: Yum plans to close ~250 U.S. Pizza Hut locations and is conducting a strategic review (including potential sale). That raises execution and turnaround risk for the pizza brand. Pizza Hut Will Shutter 250 U.S. Locations As Yum Weighs The Brand’s Future
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling was reported (~US$6.3M), which some investors view as a cautionary sign amid the mixed results and Pizza Hut uncertainties. Insiders At Yum! Brands Sold US$6.3m In Stock, Alluding To Potential Weakness

Yum! Brands Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of YUM opened at $159.22 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.04, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.66. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a twelve month low of $129.55 and a twelve month high of $163.30. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $152.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $148.91.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The restaurant operator reported $1.73 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.76 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $2.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.45 billion. Yum! Brands had a net margin of 17.95% and a negative return on equity of 21.79%. The business’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.61 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 5.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Yum! Brands Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 20th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. This is an increase from Yum! Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 20th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Yum! Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.36%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

YUM has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays upped their target price on Yum! Brands from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Yum! Brands from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $165.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $179.00 target price on shares of Yum! Brands in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. TD Cowen raised shares of Yum! Brands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $162.00 to $173.00 in a research note on Monday, November 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $160.00 price target on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Monday, November 17th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Yum! Brands has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $171.05.

Insider Transactions at Yum! Brands

In other news, CEO Scott Mezvinsky sold 276 shares of Yum! Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.17, for a total value of $42,274.92. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Aaron Powell sold 2,790 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.48, for a total value of $419,839.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 26,650 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,010,292. This represents a 9.48% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 27,398 shares of company stock worth $4,090,015. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.