ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. Buys 10,282 Shares of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM)

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. increased its stake in Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM - Free Report) by 8.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 135,250 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after buying an additional 10,282 shares during the period. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Yum! Brands were worth $18,896,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 24.0% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,012,969 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $4,022,648,000 after buying an additional 5,607,517 shares during the period. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in Yum! Brands by 23.7% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 18,121,611 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $2,512,561,000 after purchasing an additional 3,470,883 shares during the period. Capital International Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Yum! Brands by 10.2% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 14,669,356 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $2,033,906,000 after purchasing an additional 1,362,813 shares during the last quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP boosted its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP now owns 5,939,663 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $823,534,000 after purchasing an additional 121,285 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in shares of Yum! Brands by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,164,159 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $419,123,000 after buying an additional 104,328 shares during the last quarter. 82.37% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Yum! Brands Stock Up 0.3 %

YUM traded up $0.38 during trading on Thursday, hitting $133.73. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,701,788 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,958,389. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $135.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $135.27. The firm has a market cap of $37.60 billion, a PE ratio of 24.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.08. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a one year low of $118.28 and a one year high of $143.20.

Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The restaurant operator reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.80 billion. Yum! Brands had a negative return on equity of 18.90% and a net margin of 21.96%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.41 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Yum! Brands, Inc. will post 5.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Yum! Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 27th were paid a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 27th. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.00%. Yum! Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Yum! Brands news, CEO David W. Gibbs sold 7,005 shares of Yum! Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.43, for a total transaction of $941,682.15. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 152,634 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,518,588.62. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Yum! Brands news, CEO Sabir Sami sold 71,051 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.16, for a total transaction of $9,745,355.16. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 68 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,326.88. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO David W. Gibbs sold 7,005 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.43, for a total value of $941,682.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 152,634 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $20,518,588.62. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 101,673 shares of company stock valued at $13,918,095. 0.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on YUM shares. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Yum! Brands from $135.00 to $130.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 22nd. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Yum! Brands from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $156.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Yum! Brands from $150.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Yum! Brands from $155.00 to $153.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Yum! Brands from $137.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $144.56.

Yum! Brands Profile

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.