Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys 2,609,494 Shares of Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC)

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC - Free Report) by 49.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,865,803 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 2,609,494 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 2.02% of Yum China worth $356,206,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its position in shares of Yum China by 40.8% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 987,725 shares of the company's stock worth $39,302,000 after purchasing an additional 286,307 shares during the last quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. grew its position in shares of Yum China by 27.4% during the 3rd quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 255,950 shares of the company's stock worth $11,523,000 after buying an additional 55,000 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Yum China by 15.3% in the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 127,693 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,081,000 after acquiring an additional 16,981 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in shares of Yum China by 16.0% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 266,021 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,585,000 after acquiring an additional 36,660 shares during the period. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in Yum China by 294.8% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 513,114 shares of the company's stock worth $20,384,000 after acquiring an additional 383,160 shares during the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on YUMC shares. Macquarie upgraded shares of Yum China from an "underperform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $30.00 to $37.40 in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Yum China from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Yum China from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $35.50 to $60.00 in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of Yum China to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $51.68.

Yum China Stock Up 3.3 %

Shares of NYSE YUMC traded up $1.63 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $51.46. The company had a trading volume of 5,019,029 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,265,323. Yum China Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $28.50 and a 1-year high of $51.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm's 50 day moving average is $41.55 and its 200-day moving average is $36.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.36.

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $3.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.03 billion. Yum China had a net margin of 7.97% and a return on equity of 13.39%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.59 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Yum China Holdings, Inc. will post 2.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Yum China Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be given a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. Yum China's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Yum China

In other Yum China news, CTO Leila Zhang bought 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $33.36 per share, with a total value of $133,440.00. Following the acquisition, the chief technology officer now owns 41,339 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,379,069.04. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Jeff Kuai purchased 3,900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $32.72 per share, with a total value of $127,608.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 3,900 shares in the company, valued at $127,608. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CTO Leila Zhang acquired 4,000 shares of Yum China stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $33.36 per share, with a total value of $133,440.00. Following the acquisition, the chief technology officer now owns 41,339 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,379,069.04. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 18,400 shares of company stock worth $619,671 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

About Yum China

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 to sell products; and offers online food deliver services.